Inter Miami is one of the ‘most polished’ teams in MLS. Beating them would go a long way for the Union.

When Fox announced the Major League Soccer matches it would broadcast on national television ahead of this season, the mid-May match between the Union and Inter Miami felt like a natural inclusion.

Inter Miami’s star-powered squad, including Argentine icon Lionel Messi, would get a crack at the defending Supporters’ Shield winners in the final game at Miami’s brand-new Nu Stadium before the league went on hiatus for the FIFA World Cup.

Fox still should get the ratings it desires courtesy of the Messi effect when the Union face the Herons on Sunday night (7 p.m., Fox29, Apple TV), but the visitors offer less of a draw for a national TV audience.

The Union (1-9-4, 7 points) have improved since opening league play with six straight losses, but the club is winless in its last seven matches.

The team only has one league win this season, a 2-1 victory at CF Montréal, and the match in Miami will be its last chance to pick up three points for nearly two months. MLS play will resume after the World Cup ends in July, and the Union’s first fixture after the break is July 22 at home against rival New York Red Bulls.

Miami (8-2-4, 28 points) got off to a relatively inauspicious start. The defending MLS Cup champion went 3-1-3 in the club’s first seven league games, was knocked out of the Concacaf Champions Cup in the round of 16, and failed to win a game at its new home ground in its first four tries.

Javier Mascherano, Messi’s former Barcelona teammate who took over as Miami’s manager in November 2024, stepped down from his post in April after a 2-2 draw against the Red Bulls.

Guillermo Hoyos, who helped discover a young Messi at Barcelona B, took over for Mascherano. The Herons are 5-1-1 since Hoyos took over as interim manager, with the only blemish being a 4-3 loss to Orlando City SC, in which Miami squandered a 3-0 lead.

While Messi leads Miami’s attack with 12 goals and five assists, Union manager Bradley Carnell is quick to point out that Miami runs much deeper. Offseason acquisition Germán Berterame has five goals and two assists in his first 14 MLS matches, while Telasco Segovia has logged eight goal contributions in his second season with the club.

“This is the most polished, best Miami team that I have seen since their expansion,” Carnell said. “They’re younger. They’re dynamic. … They’ve signed strategically, which has made them a whole lot better. Because then you put the star power and the firepower up front. That’s where you can see it all comes together.”

Miami will look to extend a three-game winning streak when it welcomes the Union on Sunday.

Carnell’s side will need to stop Miami’s dynamic attack with a patchwork back line. Olwethu Makhanya will serve a one-game yellow card accumulation suspension against Miami, and Carnell said during Friday’s news conference that Japhet Sery Larsen will not be available for the match as he continues to recover from a shoulder injury.

That leaves Carnell without both of his usual center backs for Sunday. The availability problems continue, as Carnell also ruled out Jesús Bueno and Stas Korzeniowski for the match against Miami.

Bueno has missed the last four matches with an ankle injury, and Korzeniowski suffered a posterior cruciate ligament sprain while playing with Union II.

Indiana Vassilev’s status for Sunday also is in doubt. Carnell said Vassilev “took a blow to the head” in training. Vassilev has started 12 MLS matches in midfield for the Union this season and has scored one goal. Carnell said the team is assessing Vassilev’s ability to play on Sunday.

The good news for the Union is that Frankie Westfield is trending toward making his return, according to Carnell. The right back has missed the Union’s last two matches after suffering a hip injury against the New England Revolution.

“Frankie — it’s a race against the clock, but I think he should be OK,” Carnell said. “He’s been involved with us more and more this week, and we hope he’ll get the green light. That will be a big boost for us. We’ll just have to see who else is available.”

Definite statuses for Westfield and Vassilev will come out in Saturday evening’s player availability report.

The last-place Union will be underdogs at Miami, a designation that does not bother Carnell.

“We’re going to have our hands full, for sure,” Carnell said. “But I think we’re going to be brave. We’re very excited about this game. I’ve always said the names on the backs of the shirts never interested me. That got me a long way in my career, whether that’s as a player or as a coach. You’re always coming up against better. This is the best of the best. At the moment, when no one expects [anything] from us, this is, maybe, the moment when we can surprise.”

Makhanya will not take the pitch on Saturday because of a yellow card accumulation suspension, which will allow the South African center back to turn his attention to this summer’s World Cup.

The 22-year-old earned his first international call-up for Bafana Bafana with his inclusion in manager Hugo Broos’ 32-player preliminary squad for the World Cup. Carnell, a fellow South African who played with the national team at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, said Friday that Makhanya’s call-up was long overdue.

“It’s great that he’s in the picture now, but I think he’s been doing this for the last 14, 15 months,” Carnell said. “I think a call-up earlier would have been warranted and well-deserved. The call-up is now very well-deserved.”

Makhanya will join the team on Monday in Johannesburg to compete for a spot on the final 26-man roster during training camp and a friendly against Nicaragua. FIFA has required that rosters for all qualifying nations be finalized by June 2.

South Africa, which was drawn into Group A, will face World Cup cohosts Mexico in Mexico City in the first match of the World Cup on June 11.