Lionel Messi started his amazing football career at his birthplace Rosario with the club Newell’s Old Boys. He has a chance to go back to his hometown to play a friendly against them. Messi came to Inter Miami and helped them win the Leagues Cup which is their very first trophy. However, Miami still failed to qualify for the MLS play-offs this year. Hence, there will be a long break till the next MLS season. They’re arranging friendlies for the break and could visit the Rosario club for that purpose.
Lionel Messi started his career in football with Newell’s Old Boys at Rosario. He then moved to Barcelona when he was 13 years old. He went on to become one of the best footballers in history. After spending 18 years at Barcelona academy and with the senior team, he moved to PSG. He spent 2 years at the French club and moved to the United States and joined Inter Miami. Upon joining, he helped them win their first-ever trophy, the Leagues Cup.
By the time he joined, Miami already played most of their MLS matches. They needed to win almost all of the rest of their matches to qualify for the play-offs. However, Messi got injured and Miami’s performance started dipping and they lost points. With 2 matches still left to play, it is decided that they have not qualified for the play-offs. As a result, Miami will not play for a long time till the next MLS season starts next year around February, 2024.
That’s why they are arranging friendlies with clubs around the world including a match against Messi’s old club Newell’s Old Boys. Miami’s chief business officer Xavier Asensi, talking about the friendlies, said, “We’re very excited to continue to expand our Club’s global reach, bringing our team to play in front of incredible fans across the globe. This is a special opportunity to share the passion as we reach new audiences and put ourselves on display in new places, and we’re looking forward to beginning this adventure.”
Lionel Messi has been blessed in his career in terms of injuries. There haven’t been many times when he had to stay away from the field for long periods of time. The longest break the World Cup winner had to take in his career was 99 days during the Covid-19 pandemic. Messi might have to wait for a similar 90+ days to get to play again. Considering how frequently he played upon arrival at the club, the break can be good for him.
Especially considering, Messi and Co. will launch a serious campaign to win the MLS next season. Taking the Argentine’s age and duties to his country during the international breaks into account, Miami will have to plan well. That’s why a few friendly matches in the long break could do some good. Other than Newell’s Old Boys, they have been able to secure two friendlies against two Chinese teams – Qingdao Hainiu and Chengdu Rongcheng. More friendlies could be lined up in the coming weeks.
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