Javier Mascherano started the game by waving and shouting. Then he took to flailing his arms a bit. Then there were gestures of frustration, a few barks towards officials. By the end of it all - when Vancouver scored their second goal in what turned out to be a 5-1 aggregate thrashing in the CONCACAF Champions Cup - the Argentine stood around, hands in his pockets, pouting.
Eyebrows low, expression dismayed, like a toddler who has been told that he can't have a third chocolate chip cookie.
His Miami team was thoroughly beaten, and there was very little he could do about it. The media reaction, at least in the immediate aftermath of Wednesday night's defeat, wasn't kind to Mascherano. Social media claimed he was out of his depth. He was peppered with questions about the pressures of managing a star-studded squad, his apparent inability to get the best out of Lionel Messi, and Luis Suarez's concerning goalscoring slump.
Part of this, of course, is tied to expectations. Inter Miami have Lionel Messi. Messi is "the GOAT." Being "The GOAT" means you're supposed to win everything. When you do the math, in the simplest of uneducated, reductive, and frankly, misinformed terms, then Miami should win every game.
But zoom out, and this loss - one that saw Miami now have to potentially "settle" for two trophies - marks the end of Mascherano's honeymoon period. He has enjoyed three months of footballing frolicking in South Beach. Now, Miami is beatable. And with the ship shaken ever so slightly, it is now up to the manager to show he has the nous to ensure that this is nothing more than a bad week.
