Lionel Messi’s hopes of enjoying a quieter life in the MLS to wrap up his legendary career may be somewhat illusory. In Miami, a city shaken by his arrival, the Argentine started this Wednesday (12) an intense first week of presentations.
A day earlier, the Argentine ace landed in the sunny Florida city on a private plane with his wife and children.
In the early hours of Wednesday, Messi, according to sources consulted by AFP, went to the training center of Inter Miami, his new team, without accredited media having access.
On Sunday, the star will be presented in style at the DRV PNK stadium, in an event called “The Unveil” (The Revelation), which will also offer a musical show for the 18,000 fans.
The event will be able to be followed by Apple TV+ and will take place in parallel with the final of the Concacaf Gold Cup, which will be played in Los Angeles, on the other North American coast.
To maximize the impact of the two football events, Inter Miami may allow Gold Cup broadcasters to link to Messi’s half-time performance in the final, which will be contested by the winners of Wednesday’s semi-finals between Mexico and Jamaica and between the United States. United States and Panama.
For Monday, the Miami club summoned the media to an “important press conference”, which Messi must attend along with the owners of the franchise.
Among them will be Englishman David Beckham, whose arrival at the LA Galaxy in 2007 was the most impactful signing in MLS history… until Messi arrived.
On Tuesday, the captain of the ‘albiceleste’ will have his first full training session with his new teammates. More accustomed to the discretion of training sessions behind closed doors, Messi will have all his movements recorded by the cameras of the communication vehicles that will have access to the pitch.
The long-awaited debut could take place on July 21, against Cruz Azul, in Inter Miami’s first game in the League Cup, a tournament in which all teams from the MLS and the Mexican championship will compete for a month.
“Get Out of the Spotlight”
Anticipating the arrival of Messi, Inter Miami has hired Tata Martino, its former coach at Barcelona and the Argentine national team, and is working to bring in reinforcements such as Spanish midfielder Sergio Busquets, who could also be introduced on Sunday.
By opting to move to the MLS, leaving top-level football in Europe, Messi said one of his intentions was to have a quieter life with his family at the age of 36.
“I’m at a point where I want to step out of the spotlight a bit, think more about my family,” declared the Argentine in June when confirming his next destination after terminating his contract with Paris Saint-Germain.
In addition to all the commitments with his new franchise, which offers him a contract considerably superior to that of the other MLS stars, the introverted Messi will also be the main attraction of the bet of the giant Apple TV+ in the MLS, which began to broadcast globally this season with a contract worth US$ 2.5 billion for 10 years (R$ 12 billion at current quotations).
“A big change” for everyone
David Beckham also took part in Wednesday’s practice, which drew a crowd of media outlets. The Englishman could be seen touching the ball wearing a white shirt, sunglasses and sneakers.
“It’s a big change, I don’t know what to say, but I know it’s a big change not only for the club, but also for the city. It’s very important for everyone and we have to enjoy it,” said Venezuelan striker Josef MartÃnez.
The players of Inter Miami, a franchise with mediocre results in its four years of life, despite having had stars like Gonzalo Higuain, will have to learn to deal with an explosion of attention and expectations, acknowledged goalkeeper Drake Callender.
“We’re all professionals… we’re all focused on this weekend’s game (against St. Louis City) but all of that is a reality for us and the best thing we can do is focus on our training,” said Callender.
“We have a lot of young players in the group and for them, with the media and security around, it might be a little different,” he said.
Messi will join a squad that is sunk at the bottom of the Eastern Conference with just five wins from 21 games.
Callender acknowledged that they need an immediate turnaround if they are to have any hope of making the playoffs and challenging for the title.
“I think we are better than our position in the league, but the reality is that we are bottom. That is something we have to control and change,” he said.
Source: Gazetaesportiva
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