As he gets ready to finalize his move to Major League Soccer, Lionel Messi has assured Inter Miami that they are getting him at his very best.
Following his departure from Paris Saint-Germain, Messi is expected to be officially announced as an Inter Miami player this weekend.
The 36-year-old World Cup champion from Argentina is fully committed to finding his best in Florida.
‘My mentality and my head are not going to change and I am going to try, wherever I have to be, give my best for myself and my new club, continue to perform at the highest level,’ Messi told television in his native Argentina, via ESPN.
Speaking of his family moving to the United States, he added: ‘We are happy with the decision we made. Prepared and eager to face the new challenge, the new change.’
The sport is anticipated to reach new heights in the United States as a result of Messi’s move to MLS. Sergio Busquets, a former teammate of his at Barcelona, has already joined him in Miami, but the Argentinean is already causing a stir there.
On July 21, when Inter Miami plays Mexican team Cruz Azul in the Leagues Cup, he will make his professional debut.
After leading Argentina to victory in Qatar last year, Messi travels to the United States as a World Cup victor. It was the pinnacle of Messi’s international career and the first time Argentina had triumphed in soccer’s top award since 1986.
The 36-year-old revealed their success in Qatar, which came after they dropped their first game of the competition.
‘It is a very united group, very strong, which responded with greatness in the face of adversity,’ Messi said.
‘It was a difficult test for us after the game with Saudi Arabia because we had come from 35 or 36 matches without losing and we didn’t know how we could react to a difficult moment, because luckily we hadn’t had it until then.’
The 36-year-old added: ‘There were many boys who were playing their first World Cup. Before the World Cup, I said that the game against Saudi Arabia was very difficult because of that.
‘It is not easy to play the first game of a World Cup, whether you like it or not, anxiety or nerves appear for what it means. But this group showed that they didn’t care at all, that they were very strong, it was shown. After Saudi Arabia, they showed that.’
Lionel Scaloni was the coach who finally made Argentina click. ‘We had enormous growth at the level of play, especially after winning the Copa America (in 2021), the team played very well.
‘He was very clear about what he had to do at all times and that is the strongest thing, each person knowing what they have to do at each moment of the game is essential to manage the games as we intend or as situations arise.
‘Being confident and sure of what had to be done at all times made us strong as a team and as a group.’
Messi has faced criticism for his and Argentina’s failings in the past but even during these ‘difficult situations’ he felt ‘there was a generation that defended me to the death and fought with many people to defend me.
‘That for me is a beauty,’ he explained. ‘I thank you for all that love, fights that they had to go through for me… it was also a greater satisfaction for them to have won the World Cup for the whole country.’
