When Messi lifted the sport’s greatest prize, the FIFA World Cup, with Argentina on 18 December 2022, many pundits felt the superstar had “completed” football. After all, what worlds are there left to conquer when you’ve captained your country to that trophy and the Copa América, won La Liga on 10 occasions, and earned 4 UEFA Champions League titles?
And yet, unlike many of his illustrious colleagues who head to Saudi Arabia or China for a lucrative pay day before retirement, the 36-year-old will instead head to the United States to take on a new challenge in the final years of his career. Inter Miami, co-owned by Manchester United, Real Madrid, and England legend David Beckham, have secured Messi’s services following his departure from Paris Saint-Germain this summer.
Messi departs Europe having racked up an astonishing 704 goals and 338 assists in 853 appearances. The majority of those came with Barcelona, with whom he had spent his entire professional career prior to joining PSG in 2021.
The No. 10’s virtually unrivalled goalscoring ability and creativity has helped cultivate his reputation as the best in the world – not just of the modern era, but of all time – but it is not only these attributes that have propelled him into that position. With the ball at his feet, Messi is a truly magical player, whose skill and technique have terrorised the best defenders in the world for almost 2 decades. Put simply, he’s a player every football fan should endeavour to see live before he hangs up his boots.
Messi is expected to make his Inter Miami debut in the Leagues Cup match against Cruz Azul on 21 July. Failing that, he could take to the field for the first time just 4 days later in a Leagues Cup game with Atlanta United. Tickets for those unmissable games start at USD $1,050 and $720, respectively.
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