Inter Miami trades Duke, Lassiter for Montreal defender Kamal Miller, $1.3 million

Inter Miami acquired Canadian national team center back and MLS All-Star Kamal Miller plus $1.3 million in General Allocation Money (GAM) from CF Montreal in exchange for winger Ariel Lassiter and midfielder Bryce Duke, the club confirmed on Wednesday.

The moves give Inter Miami a significant boost in available salary, which would help cover the cost of FC Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets, who has been in serious talks with the club about joining this summer.

Positionally, the moves also help pave the way for the potential summer signing of Argentine superstar Lionel Messi, who plays the No. 10 spot, which is Duke’s natural position. Duke had been filling in at defensive midfield for injured team captain Gregore since his injury but Inter Miami this week is finalizing a contract with 30-year-old defensive midfielder Dixon Arroyo from Ecuadorian club Emelec to play in that spot.

Miller, 25, played every minute for Canada in the 2022 World Cup and has made 32 appearances for the national team. He started 58 of 60 games for CF Montreal, scoring three goals and adding six assists. He was named a 2022 MLS All-Star. He began his MLS career with Orlando City in 2019 and previously was captain of the Syracuse University team.

“Kamal is a standout defender who’s just entering his prime,” said Inter Miami sporting director Chris Henderson. “He’s improved every year of his career and become one of the league’s best players at his position. He has also excelled on the international stage, including at the biggest stage in the World Cup...this trade gives us the flexibility to continue making exciting moves in the near future and further strengthen our squad.”

Duke was acquired by Inter Miami from Los Angeles FC before the 2022 season in exchange for $100,000 in GAM and played so well that he recently signed a long-term contract. He had one goal and seven assists last season. Lassiter also signed before the 2022 season in exchange for $100,000 in GAM and scored four goals with five assists in 41 games at Miami.

“Bryce and Ariel both made tremendous strides with the club and we’re proud to have helped them along the way,” Henderson said. “We’re grateful to them for everything they did as members of our club and wish them well moving forward.”

Montreal was looking for offense, as the team is in last place in the Eastern conference with just one win and three goals in six games.

“We’re very happy with the arrival of these two players,” Olivier Renard, Montréal’s VP and chief sporting officer, said of Duke and Lassiter. “We had been discussing with Miami for a while regarding Bryce. He is an intelligent player on the pitch, with good technique and passing quality. He is a modern player who will bring creativity.

“Ariel is a versatile, left-footed player, with good speed and goal-scoring ability. He can also play as a striker and will help us offensively.”

In other news, Inter Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender and right back DeAndre Yedlin were called into U.S. national team camp for the April 19 friendly against Mexico in Glendale, Arizona. It is Callender’s first invitation to the senior national camp.

Callender has been one of the bright spots for Inter Miami this season.

The 25-year-old goalkeeper leads MLS with 33 saves through the first seven matches. His 80.5 percent save percentage also ranks in the top 10 among shot-stoppers across the league in 2023. He had seven saves in a 1-0 loss to Dallas last Saturday.

“What you’ve seen from Drake Callender is the best keeper in the league, without a shadow of a doubt,” Inter Miami coach Phil Neville said after the Dallas game. “Some of those saves, the quality, difficult saves he made look so easy. He made them look easy because he has this quality not many of the modern day keepers have and that is he catches the ball and keeps it close to him. He doesn’t parry or punch.”

“Every ball that goes in, he smothers, captures, gets hold of it and his performance was absolutely sensational. If he carries on in this trajectory, he’s going to be a top, top keeper.”

Neville went on suggest the U.S. national team call Callender in and he compared Callender to former U.S. World Cup star Tim Howard, who was Neville’s teammate in England at Manchester United and Everton.

“He had a fantastic season, third-best keeper in the league, and I was surprised he wasn’t called to the U.S. camp in January,” Neville said in February. “He’s got incredible potential. He is the next generation USA keeper. I was lucky enough to play with Tim Howard and I see great similarities between Tim and Drake. We expect big things from him.”

Inter Miami is mired in a five-game losing streak and fell to 12th place with a 2-5-0 record. The team is off this week and plays on the road at Houston on April 22.