Inter Miami at Saputo Stadium on Saturday | Messi Mania… at the coffee machine!

The name Lionel Messi is perhaps the best known in the sporting world across the globe. So, how did we end up welcoming him to Montreal this Saturday? The Press puts you once again in the shoes of a soccer scholar always ready to annoy his colleagues at the coffee machine. At least their interest continues to grow!

(Guylain, who has learned to wait a little before placing his lips on the cup of hot coffee) So if I understand correctly, it is the best player in history who will set foot on the pitch at the Saputo stadium. How is it possible ?

My good Guylain, to understand that, you have to go back to 2007. David Beckham, does that mean anything to you?

(Guylain, smirk) My girlfriend told me a little about it!

We understand it. This is because Beckham, when he arrived in MLS with the Los Angeles Galaxy in 2007, had a clause in his contract which would allow him, around fifteen years later, to obtain a franchise from the Garber circuit at a discount. . Thus Inter Miami was born, in 2020. Then, to attract Messi, the League did not hesitate to be creative with its usually opaque rules linked to payroll and player acquisitions. With the profile of David Beckham and that of the increasingly attractive MLS, Miami managed to pry Messi from the clutches of the rich Saudis.

Messi obtained a contract estimated at around 60 million dollars per year, for a pact which extends over two and a half years and which could total 162 million. This agreement – ​​and this is the crux of the matter – includes financial compensation from Adidas and Apple TV, the two major partners of the MLS. As a designated player, the Argentinian gets a salary of 20 million, only from Inter. He is thus, by several millions, the highest paid player in the league. The second highest earner? Lorenzo Insigne, with 15.4 million. This is how you attract the best player in history to your circuit.

A year later, here is Messi who is flourishing in MLS, and who should impress the gallery at the Saputo stadium on Saturday.

(Juan, a Messi fan who invites himself into the conversation from the door frame, without a drink) And he destroys everything in his path. ¡ Olé, olé olé olé!

Calm down, Juan, it’s a working environment here! But yes, you are right. Last year, Leo Messi took the reins mid-season of a moribund Miami team – last in the standings – and took them to the first ever Leagues Cup. If Miami and the Garber circuit wanted to make a splash with the acquisition of the Pulga, or “the Flea”, they could not hope for better.

(Luc and Kim, with names as concise as their question formulated in unison) But is he going to play in Montreal?

Everything indicates yes, dear friends! After missing a few games, including that of Montreal in Florida, due to an injury, he is at the top of his form. And on the natural pitch of the Saputo stadium, one of the most beautiful in the league, he will have no reason to complain.

This season, the numbers are mind-blowing. In just 7 starts out of 12 games, he already has 10 goals and 12 assists. A total that no other MLS striker would deny… at the end of the season!

(Juan) ¡ Olé, olé ol –

(Nour, straw in mouth and bubble tea in hand, suddenly speaks after listening attentively) But explain one thing to me. Is it the MLS players who are not of caliber?

Above all, Lionel Messi, even at 36, still has the level of the player who led his Argentina to the World Cup title in 2022.

But let’s not forget that the most famous number 10 had the upper hand over all the competition throughout his career. We are talking here about 17 seasons in the jersey of the FC Barcelona first team, with which he won 35 titles, including 10 La Liga titles and 4 of the Champions League. Against his will, he took charge of Paris Saint-Germain in 2021, with whom he lifted three trophies, including two Ligue 1 titles. Unhappy in Paris, he found a smile again in Miami.

It is true that it took him time to become part of the legend of his selection, but he finally won the Copa América with Argentina in 2021, then the Qatar World Cup, a year later.

That’s for the titles. Don’t spill your drinks, dear colleagues, but still prepare yourself for what’s to come.

Lionel Messi has 727 goals in 878 club matches, then 106 other goals in 180 matches with his country. He has won no less than eight Ballons d’Or, a record. This prestigious trophy rewards the best player in the world each year. He even won one while a member of Inter Miami, notably for his prowess the previous year!

In short, Nour, indeed, MLS players have a lot to learn from Messi. But he also had the habit of taking down all his opponents on the football field.

(Guylain, prankster) Will he take off the CF Montreal players’ pants?

We have the right to fear the worst, my good Guylain! CF Montreal has been inconsistent this season. He has the third-worst goals conceded total in MLS, with 20 in 10 games. But he also only played two games at home.

And precisely, at home, he did well, with a victory and a draw. A clash in front of your supporters allows you to impose your own style of play, and we can assume that Laurent Courtois, with all the attention that will be paid to him, will want to be full of enthusiasm for his team.

Obviously, Messi is not alone. Luis Suarez (10 goals, 5 assists) is just as fiery. Their association with their former FC Barcelona teammates, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, is still taking its toll.

From talking too much, my own coffee comes out cold! I’ll leave you with this, colleagues: don’t forget that Montreal beat Miami 3-2 at home in March. Messi was not dressed, Matías Cóccaro and Josef Martínez were not injured, but still. The pattern for a victory exists.

Saturday, at the Saputo stadium, the match will have all the appearance of a gala meeting. Enjoy the show and the visit, because it doesn’t come often!