Al Hilal or Barcelona – the names of these two clubs were heard as possible for Lionel Messi for several days. But party change means uncertainty and surprise. The Spanish journalist Guillem Balague gave that surprise. In a report written on the BBC, he said, not Al Hilal or Barcelona, Messi is going to Inter Miami, a club of Major League Soccer (MLS) in the United States.
Messi has agreed to the contract proposed by Inter Miami, rejecting the attractive offer of Saudi Arabia. However, when contacted by ESPN, a spokesperson for Inter Miami declined to comment.
Rumors of Messi’s change of team mainly came to the fore after the World Cup. Messi decided to leave Paris because the contract with PSG was not negotiated. The names of three clubs were heard as Messi’s last destination. Along with Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal, Spanish superpower Barcelona and MLS club Inter Miami were in the race to get Messi. But there was little talk of Miami from the start. Most of them were Al Hilal and Barca. There is also much debate about whether Messi will turn down Al Hilal’s big offer and return to Barcelona.
According to AFP, Messi has completed the contract with the Saudi club Al Hilal. However, Messi’s father and agent Jorge Messi later claimed that the news was false. Messi officially said goodbye to PSG at the beginning of this month. Then last Monday, Messi’s father met with Barcelona president Juan Laporta. At that time, Messi’s new contract with Barca seemed to be a matter of time.
But today Balag gave a different news. If his claim is true, neither Barcelona nor Al Hilal are getting Messi. Inter Miami is going to be the new address of the World Cup winning Argentine star. The Miami deal also enlists the help of brands like Adidas and Apple.
Balag said that Messi wanted to play one more season in Europe. But after not getting any satisfactory offer, he ended up with Inter Miami and Al Hilal as alternatives. Al Hilal, the most successful club in Asia, offered a huge contract for Messi, but in the end he chose Miami. Messi cited the lifestyle there and the potential for big brand deals outside of football as the reason for choosing Miami. Apart from that, Messi also has his own house in Miami. Balag said that these are the main factors that motivated Messi to choose Miami.
The news of not being able to bring back Messi despite being so close will be heartbreaking for Barca fans. Many people involved, including Barca coach Xavi, repeatedly talked about bringing Messi back. Then there were reports of La Liga getting the green signal to buy Messi. However, there are reports that Messi is upset because he has not received an official offer from Barca.
And in the end, Messi may have chosen Miami without getting any positive message. However, Messi and Miami have not yet confirmed the news of Messi going to the United States. And there is no chance to believe any news until the party change is official. So Messi fans have to wait a little longer to get the final news.