Messi’s Miami: When Comfort Becomes a Club’s Curse

Lionel Messi is one of the greatest players to ever grace a football pitch. That’s not up for debate. But as Inter Miami continues to struggle when it matters most, it's worth asking: has Messi become too big for the club he plays for?

The problem isn't that Messi joined MLS. It’s that he brought an entire entourage with him — friends, legends, yes, but also aging players past their prime. Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, Luis Suárez, even coach Javier Mascherano. All signed to make Leo’s life easier. And that's exactly what happened: Messi built a comfort zone in Miami, not just a football team.

And to be fair, no one can blame him. Everyone wants to be surrounded by people they trust and like. The issue is that Inter Miami allowed Messi’s comfort to override the club’s long-term interest. What’s good for Leo isn’t always good for the club.

It’s the same story we saw in the final years of Messi’s European career. Alongside his veteran “buddies,” Leo could still dominate against weaker or mid-table teams — and that helped keep regular season results respectable. But when playoff football begins, the physicality ramps up, and suddenly they can’t keep up. The legs go, the press disappears, and Inter Miami fades out.

We’ve seen this movie before.

Back in Europe, during his final years at Barcelona, Messi remained brilliant — but the team around him slowly declined. His massive wages and influence led to long-term contracts for his close friends and fellow veterans. The club became bloated, financially crippled, and unable to compete at the top level. Barca’s painful rebuild has taken years, and only now is the club starting to feel like a contender again.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid faced a similar moment in 2018. Florentino Pérez made the hard call to let Cristiano Ronaldo go. The club didn’t collapse. In fact, they’ve won two Champions League titles since and remain in far better financial shape than Barcelona — despite both clubs being on par economically a decade ago. Why? Because Pérez refused to let any player, even Ronaldo, become bigger than the club.

So let’s stop saying “Inter Miami is weak.” This team is Messi’s team. His choices built it. His fingerprints are on both the triumphs and the failures. Just like at late-era Barcelona, Messi is not just part of the system — he is the system.

Thankfully, international football works differently. Messi can’t call up Suárez or Busquets for Argentina. Which is why the Albiceleste, full of hungry, younger talent, still looks like a team that can win big.

Published by Patrick Jane
14.05.2025