The greatest recruiter in MLS history assembled a superteam less with his words, more with his presence.
Lionel Messi is famously quiet. But ever since he said “Miami” last June, friends and Argentines have flocked to South Florida. Sergio Busquets came to play alongside his longtime amigo. Jordi Alba took a giant pay cut to join them.
In December, Luis Suarez arrived “to reunite with them,” as he said. But this, an unprecedented transfer-market haul, is more than a simple reunion. Diego Gómez, a budding Paraguayan star, joined Inter Miami a few days after Messi did. Facundo Farías, a 20-year-old Argentine attacker; and Tomás Avilés, a highly touted teenage center back from Argentina’s Racing, followed two weeks later.
Soccer players far and wide suddenly eyed Inter Miami, a last-place team in a stopgap stadium, with intrigue. When Inter approached Nicolás Freire, the Argentine captain of Mexican club Pumas, Freire, a 29-year-old defender, saw opportunity he couldn’t resist.
“In my sporting career, in the end, what will remain in my memory is who I had the chance to share every day with,” Freire said after signing with Miami in January. “And, well, this will undoubtedly be a very cool experience.”
In his “cabeza de hincha,” the head of a fan, he rehearsed what he’d say to Messi when they first met. But when he turned around one day and saw the GOAT, he couldn’t find words. “I felt stupid,” he later said with a smile.
Freire and others have now settled into life at Messi’s Inter Miami. Nine starting-caliber players have arrived since July, and a 10th might be on the way. Federico Redondo, a 21-year-old midfield star and top prospect in Argentina’s Primera, is reportedly en route for a transfer fee of up to $8 million.
For most MLS clubs, Redondo would be a club-record signing and a centerpiece. For Miami, he feels like a footnote — and a problem.
Negotiations reportedly reached final stages last week, then wobbled due to “MLS regulations” and “obstacles.” The league maintains a complicated series of spending restrictions and a salary cap. And Inter Miami’s position underneath the cap was allegedly “dire.”
The Redondo deal, therefore, raised eyebrows at rival clubs. Miami’s overall spend has raised suspicions related to rule enforcement and roster compliance. On the eve of the season, the Redondo situation was finally resolved; contracts have reportedly been signed. But it forced Inter Miami to confront a…