MIAMI BEACH.- Lionel Messi was not present Thursday at the annual media day of the MLS, but it wasn’t necessary.
It will be Messi’s first full season with the Inter Miami. Everyone is watching every step of the Argentine star at the start of the preseason. The club has not come close to winning the league championship and did not even qualify for the playoffs last season, even with the “Pulga” in recent months. But now it appears to be one of the favorites at the opening of 2024.
“Even as a rival coach, everyone is waiting on the schedule for the Miami game“, said John Herdmanthe former coach of Canada which now directs Toronto FC. “It’s a really exciting time for the MLS to have what, in my opinion, is the best player to ever play in this league.”
He Inter Miami It underwent a complete renovation last season. Apart from the signing of Messi, he incorporated Sergio Busquets, Jordi Alba and the coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino. At the end of the season, they added the Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez, another ex-partner of Messi in the Barcelona.
The bet was worth conquering the Leagues Cup, his first trophy. But injuries, including one that sidelined Messi, meant that the team could not qualify for the playoffs. MLS. Now, with a full season from the star, Busquets, Alba and Suárez together, it is reasonable to expect much more success.
“He’s obviously one of the best of all time. It just makes the league better.“It makes the players better, it attracts more players to come to the league and be part of it,” the midfielder commented on Messi. Darlington Nagbefrom the brand new champion Columbus Crew.
Messi’s undisputed impact:
Messi is by far the biggest draw of all time in the league. The presence of the captain of the world champion team and winner of the last Golden Ball drew more eyes to the MLShis jersey shot to number 1 on the league’s sales list and tickets to matches Inter Miami They became the most popular. The fact that he is in the league gives him a legitimacy that some in the world of football did not see before.
Although the core of Inter Miami He is not young, since Suárez is 37 years old, Busquets is 36 and Alba is 35, no one seems to be betting against him.
We just have to imagine what could happen if the Messimania makes the playoffs in 2024.
Source: AP
