The three men were last all together at Camp Nou in 2014, but will be linking up again to try and inspire a turnaround at the DRV PNK Stadium
It's all change at Inter Miami right now. The MLS outfit are in the middle of a miserable season on the pitch, as they find themselves rooted to the bottom of the Eastern Conference after 18 matches.
But that hasn't prevented them from attracting the greatest footballer in history to Florida. Lionel Messi has agreed a two-and-a-half-year contract at the DRV PNK Stadium, with his free transfer set to be completed after his contract at Paris Saint-Germain expires on June 30.
The likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Kaka, Steven Gerrard, Wayne Rooney and Andrea Pirlo have all graced MLS down the years, with Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham initially paving the way for an influx of megastars to the U.S. when joining the LA Galaxy back in 2007.
Messi's move to Inter Miami will stand above them all, though, and MLS is already enjoying greater exposure than ever before, despite the fact their new poster boy is yet to touch down in America. But he won't be able to transform the fortunes of a dismal Inter Miami team on his own.
That is why the club has also gone to great lengths to bring in two of Messi's former Barcelona colleagues. Sergio Busquets brought the curtain down on his glittering 18-year career at Camp Nou in May, before agreeing to join Messi in Miami. And it has now been confirmed that they will be coached by Gerardo 'Tata' Martino, who worked with the pair at Barcelona in the 2013-14 season.
The Argentine has a huge job on his hands, but having Messi and Busquets on hand to lead the dressing room gives him more than a fighting chance of success.
Getty ImagesMartino's credentials
"Tata is a highly respected figure in our sport whose track record speaks for itself," Beckham said after confirmation of Martino's appointment. "We are confident that his achievements in the game and experience as a head coach will inspire our team and excite our fans and look forward to seeing the impact he will have on and off the field."
The 60-year-old has earned that billing after a 25-year career in management that has seen him take in spells at 10 different clubs and three different national teams, including his native Argentina. Martino became La Albiceleste boss after leaving Barcelona in 2014, and spent two years in charge.
He guided Argentina to back-to-back Copa America finals, but they lost both times against Chile. Martino resigned after the second defeat, while Messi famously announced his retirement from international football, only to perform a U-turn a few months later.
Martino failed to deliver silverware, but his overall record of 19 wins from 29 games was impressive, and it could be argued that Argentina would have done far better than a last-16 exit at the 2018 World Cup had he remained at the helm.
He certainly did enough to pique the interest of Atlanta United, who appointed him as their inaugural head coach after joining MLS in 2016. Martino went on to guide the club to MLS Cup glory before leaving his post for personal reasons – but football in the United States left its mark on him.
“I was part of an extraordinary project with Atlanta United that had a clear direction, a lot of communication and similar objectives that were established very quickly and executed," Martino said in a recent interview with . "After coaching in MLS, I became attracted to it. I like the league."
The Mexico national team brought Martino on board in 2019, and he made an instant impact by delivering the CONCACAF Gold Cup. He also guided El Tri to the CONCACAF Nations League final and another Gold Cup showpiece in 2021, but they were beaten by the United States on both occasions.
Martino's reign ended after Mexico's poor showing at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, which saw them exit at the group stage for the first time in 28 years. But that didn't put off Inter Miami from pursuing him.
There is no doubt that Martino is a huge upgrade on Phil Neville, who was sacked after a disastrous run of results at the start of June, and only ever got the job due to his friendship with Beckham. Inter Miami now have a manager in place that knows what it takes to be successful at the highest level, not least because of his short but memorable experience at Barcelona.
AdvertisementGettyDisappointment at Barca
After the late Tito Vilanova resigned amid his battle with throat cancer in July 2013, it came as a huge surprise to supporters across Spain when Barca turned to Martino. The former Newell's Old Boys boss had never previously worked in European football, and he was inheriting a star-studded squad led by Messi.
Martino's arrival also coincided with the signing of Neymar from Santos, and his reign started well enough as Barca won the Supercopa de Espana before going unbeaten through their first 16 matches across all competitions. But they were unable to keep up that momentum.
Atletico Madrid pipped Barca to the finishing post in La Liga, and also knocked them out of the Champions League in the quarter-finals. The Blaugrana suffered a painful Copa del Rey final defeat against arch-rivals Real Madrid, too.
Martino resigned immediately after Barca's 1-1 draw against Atletico at Camp Nou on the final day of the season, and issued a heartfelt apology. "I am sorry that we did not achieve the objectives that this club had been achieving year after year," he said. "I would like to thank absolutely everyone. I want to thank the players. I would rather not talk about their qualities as footballers but as people; this club has great people here."
The Barca dressing room never turned against Martino. Xavi leapt to his defence after a 3-1 loss at Real Sociedad in the second half of the season, telling reporters: "We’ve never doubted Martino, ever. He’s a winner and if he has surprised us it’s been for the best."
Questions were constantly asked about Martino's relationship with Messi, especially after he substituted the diminutive magician in the reverse La Liga fixture against La Real when Barca went 4-1 up. But Messi's standards never slipped during his tenure.
The Argentina international recorded 41 goals and 14 assists in 46 appearances for Barca that season, and the squad was still in great shape by the time Martino left. After adding Luis Suarez to their ranks in the summer of 2014, it wasn't too much of a surprise when the Blaugrana went on to win the treble in their first campaign under Martino's successor, Luis Enrique.
Still, Martino acknowledged that he could have done better. “I made some monumental mistakes with Barcelona,” he said in an interview with shortly after leaving the club. “I’ll tell you in another life.”
However, he did also add: "All I learned in Barcelona was about being surrounded by stars, by the best in the world." Martino now has the same opportunity again at Inter Miami, and he will surely hope to exorcise the demons from his ill-fated stint at Camp Nou once and for all.
GettyBusquets & Messi back together
"On the pitch always with 5, but in reality as a player and as a person you are a 10, Busi. I wish you the best in your new stage and always, both you and your family. Thank you for on and off the pitch, there were so many moments we spent together, many good and some also complicated… They will stay forever!"
Messi clearly had no idea he'd be playing with Busquets again in the U.S. when he penned an emotional message to his former team-mate after his departure from Barcelona. But his appreciation for the Spaniard has always been clear.
And Busquets has always been one of Messi's most vocal supporters. "Messi is the best player in history," he told Barca's official website in December 2014. "I wasn't around 50 or 100 years ago, but I think he's the best because of the things he does and the records he's breaking almost every day. It's impossible to find anyone else with a talent like his."
And there were few players or staff members hit harder by Messi's surprise departure from Barcelona some seven years later than Busquets. He said to Spanish radio station in March: "Of course I miss him. On the field and off it. Nobody else has given us what he gave us. He made a huge difference."
Messi and Busquets played 567 games together at Barca, winning 30 trophies, including three Champions Leagues and eight Liga titles. Busquets started in the club's famed La Masia academy a few years after Messi, but he instantly realised what the midfielder could bring to the team.
"I remember what Messi told me," former Barca manager Pep Guardiola told in 2018. "After two or three days of training with him, he came to me and said, 'I like this one'. And I said, 'When there is trouble, he will be there'."
Busquets was never the chief provider for Messi, but he did the dirty work in the middle of the park that gave Barca's main man the freedom to wreak havoc in the final third. At the peak of his powers, Busquets was the best defensive midfielder in the business.
Inter Miami have brought him to serve as Messi's facilitator once again. And if they can even come close to recapturing the magic of their prime years together at Barca, MLS supporters will be in for a real treat.
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Getty/GOALThe Messi effect
“Players of that class transform leagues,” Martino said when talking up Messi's abilities to in April. “In MLS, a league that continues to take steps forward, and one that seeks a level of excellence any time it makes changes, to welcome the best player in the world would be incredibly impactful.”
Inter Miami's managing owner Jorge Mas went a step further after the agreement with Messi was struck. “I think there will always be a before and after Messi when we talk about the sport in the United States," he said. "I have a very, very strong-held belief that we can create in North America and the United States if not the greatest league, one of the top two leagues in the world. I cannot overemphasise the magnitude of this announcement."
Messi became the most decorated player in history after picking up a second Ligue 1 winners' medal at PSG, just a few months after inspiring Argentina to glory at the World Cup. The 36-year-old is also a shoo-in for a record-extending eighth Ballon d'Or when the awards ceremony rolls around in October.
PSG never really saw the best of Messi, who struggled to settle in the French capital, but he still showed his class in regular bursts. And it was simply a joy to watch him roll back the years in Qatar and "complete football" by finally capturing the one title that had been missing from his CV.
Messi has proven that he is not finished yet. The Barca legend may be turning his back on European football, but he is motivated by the prospect of a new challenge in MLS.
"After winning the World Cup and not being able to return to Barcelona, it was my turn to go to the league of the United States to live football in another way and to enjoy the day-to-day more," he told when explaining his decision to join Inter Miami. "If it had been a matter of money, I’d have gone to Saudi Arabia or elsewhere."
The commercial benefits of signing Messi have already been huge for the club, who have seen social media numbers and ticket prices increase tenfold. Inter Miami are now the most followed team in U.S. sport ever, factoring in those from NFL, MLB, NHL, and other teams from MLS.
But there is also a genuine belief that Messi can drag Inter Miami out of their current position with his performances on the pitch. He's not yet a superstar in decline, and if Martino plays the right system, he will cause all sorts of problems for defences across MLS in the second half of the season and beyond.