The MLS is often considered a retirement league for European players nearing the end of their careers. However, this isn’t really a fair assessment. While it’s true that the likes of David Beckham, Wayne Rooney and Frank Lampard have all seen out their professional playing careers in the MLS, these big-ticket stars weren’t exactly phoning it in. Over the past decade, the calibre of foreign talent joining the MLS has improved considerably. This year however, the arrival of Lionel Messi to Major League Soccer has elevated the level of the league even further.
Farewell Paris Saint-Germain
For many football fans, Messi will always be seen as a Barcelona player. However, his 2021-2023 run with Paris Saint-Germain is nothing to be scoffed at. Making 58 appearances and netting no less than 22 goals, his two-season tenure with the French favourites is one of the strangest spells of his career. Most will remember the spell for his captaining the Argentina national team to victory at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
In other words, this is hardly a player who’s ready to be put out to pasture. When it was announced that Messi would be leaving PSG in 2023, his next venture was anyone’s guess. Online sportsbooks like LeoVegas might have had him tipped for a return to Barcelona, but Saudi team Al Hilal were also said to be eyeing him.
Eventually, it was announced that Messi had signed with Inter Miami in a contract that’s thought to be worth around $150m. Although the deal is only expected to run until the end of 2025, Messi’s MLS arrival is just the first wave of what looks set to be a tsunami of Barcelona talent.
FC Barcelona in All but Name?
Although financial woes over at Barcelona put a stop to any talk of Messi returning to the ranks, he now finds himself in familiar company in South Florida. In May 2023, Barcelona captain Sergio Busquets announced that he would be stepping away from La Liga at the end of the season. Shortly after Messi’s Inter Miami announcement, Busquets was confirmed to be joining his former teammate in the MLS. In July, another Barcelona stalwart, Jordi Alba, confirmed that he too had signed with Inter Miami.
While there have been negotiations between Inter Miami and Luis Suarez, so far they have not resulted in an agreement. The former FC Barcelona player had a contract with the Brazilian Gremio. However, the Uruguayan legend has announced that he will leave the team soon, which has reignited rumours of his reunion with his former teammates.
Although Inter Miami looks like it’s quickly becoming a Barcelona all-stars team, the team has been trying to look elsewhere during this Summer. Angel Di Maria was negotiating a move to the MLS alongside his national side teammate, but in the end chose to stay in Europe, moving back to Benfica, his first European team of 15 years ago. Another deal that Inter Miami wasn’t able to close was Leandro Paredes. The midfielder was tempted by Messi and his team, but in the end he preferred to stay in European football… for the time being.
