FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., 29 Oct (AP) \u2014 Lionel Messi was at a youth soccer tournament in southwest Florida this weekend, watching his son play. He was trying to be just a normal soccer dad. Of course, there is no such thing as normal when talking about the best player in the world.<\/p>\n
Everyone gets mesmerized by his presence.<\/p>\n
Even, as it turns out, his Inter Miami teammates.<\/p>\n
Consider DeAndre Yedlin, for example. Yedlin is a highly decorated, highly accomplished player with worldwide experience and acclaim. He has played in the Premier League and in two World Cups for the U.S. and has been a Major League Soccer All-Star. He was the captain for Inter Miami to start this season. Then Messi joined the club in July, and everything changed in a moment.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI mean, yeah, I was starstruck,\u201d Yedlin said. \u201cThis is a guy that I grew up watching and admiring. So, of course, whenever you come across a great \u2014 especially the greatest to ever do it \u2014 I think it\u2019s normal to get a bit starstruck. I really was like: \u2018Wow, that is Messi. He\u2019s here.\u2019 But when you play with him, get to know him, you realize he\u2019s a very normal guy, very humble, cares about everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n
Messi is humble. He is not normal. That will almost certainly be on full display again Monday in Paris, when the 36-year-old is expected to win the Ballon d\u2019Or \u2014 presented to the best player in the world for a given year \u2014 for the eighth time, extending his record. Nobody else has won more than five of those trophies.<\/p>\n
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said earlier this month that his top player, Erling Haaland, and Messi both deserve the trophy.<\/p>\n
\u201cI always said that the Ballon d\u2019Or had to be of two sections \u2014 one for Messi and one for the others,\u201d said Guardiola, who coached Messi with Barcelona.<\/p>\n
It will be Messi\u2019s 14th time finishing in the top three of the balloting, extending another record. He won it while playing for Barcelona, he won it while playing with Paris Saint-Germain and now he\u2019ll likely win it while playing for Inter Miami in what would mark the first instance of an MLS player getting such recognition.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlaying with him on the pitch and sharing moments together is a joy,\u201d said Jordi Alba, a longtime Messi teammate who joined him with Inter Miami as well.<\/p>\n
The first season \u2014 first half-season, really \u2014 for Messi in Miami was a resounding success in many ways, a failure in one other. The club won its first trophy, with Messi leading the way to the Leagues Cup championship (and even though he was wearing the captain\u2019s armband, in a nod to that humility teammates speak of, he had Yedlin, the previous captain, hoist that trophy). Attendance skyrocketed, Inter Miami\u2019s footprint on soccer\u2019s social media space skyrocketed, viewership on Apple TV was believed to soar and Messi\u2019s No. 10 jersey became the hottest seller in MLS. He\u2019s making somewhere between $50 million and $60 million per season with Inter Miami, and the revenue streams are making that possible. (Season-ticket prices for 2024 are also much higher, to the chagrin of many fans.)<\/p>\n
But injuries, wear and tear all took a toll, probably exacerbated by Inter Miami having to play so many matches in Leagues Cup. (\u201cIt was very hard for us, playing every three days, with travel, with training,\u201d Messi said.) A leg injury forced Messi to miss much of the late-season team\u2019s MLS slate and the club missed the league playoffs by a wide margin, though in fairness, it was well out of the playoff picture before Messi arrived in July.<\/p>\n
They\u2019re already prepping for 2024 now, set to begin training for a pair of early November exhibitions in China. And when the calendar flips to a new year, Inter Miami will be expected to win every trophy it competes for \u2013 MLS Cup, Leagues Cup, the U.S. Open Cup and the CONCACAF Champions Cup.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll enjoy the holidays in Argentina, the first time I\u2019ll have a lot of fun in December, in peace with my people,\u201d Messi told reporters after an Argentina match earlier this month. \u201cAnd then I will come back again, preseason, start from scratch and prepare for the best possible outcomes as always.\u201d<\/p>\n
Everything is different for Inter Miami now. The new stars \u2014 Messi, Alba, Sergio Busquets \u2014 have arrived, all part of this summer\u2019s midseason splashes and returning for 2024. Another midseason move: landing coach Gerardo \u201cTata\u201d Martino, who now gets a full offseason and preseason to set the club up for what awaits in 2024.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the year when I thought somehow our work would actually start,\u201d Martino said. \u201cObviously in these four months there are important things that we were playing for, and that were very, very important for the club. But now with a great preseason, a concrete roster, a defined roster, that\u2019s when we have to look at our strengths and plan for a great year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Much of Inter Miami\u2019s roster will be back. Rumors are flying that at least one more big name \u2014 Luis Suarez, the Uruguayan who played with Messi at Barcelona \u2014 will be headed to Inter Miami. And Messi, even after nearly two decades of being in soccer\u2019s brightest spotlight, remains the biggest star.<\/p>\n
After winning the World Cup for Argentina in December, he wound up coming to MLS to enjoy the last chapter of his playing career. So far, so good. It was a ride like none other for Inter Miami this season, and the club knows 2024 will be another whirlwind.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve heard rocket ship, I\u2019ve heard circus, but I think it was just something that was new to North America, to our team, to this league,\u201d Inter Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender said. \u201cIt was something that nobody had ever seen before. I mean, it\u2019s a pretty big moment in soccer history and there was so much attention because people didn\u2019t know what was going to happen. But in that unknown, there\u2019s a greatness and possibilities. So, I\u2019m really looking forward to 2024, because we know what can happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
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