Lionel Messi has returned to coaching with Inter Miami CF, however the membership faces a big pre-season disaster simply days earlier than their pleasant in opposition to Membership América in Las Vegas. The workforce is reportedly missing a contracted goalkeeper eligible to play within the match, highlighting a sequence of challenges going through the membership forward of a busy 2025 marketing campaign.
Inter Miami’s beginning goalkeeper, Drake Callender, is away on worldwide responsibility. Nevertheless, backup goalkeepers Oscar Ustari and Cole Jensen have but to formally renew their contracts, leaving the membership with solely youth academy gamers obtainable for the essential pleasant in opposition to Membership América.
The scenario has prompted a frank admission from supervisor Javier Mascherano, who acknowledged the surreal circumstances throughout a press convention.
“We’re ready for the paperwork to be finalized for the 2 goalkeepers now we have within the squad, not counting Drake… Clearly, you’ll be able to’t play soccer and not using a goalkeeper, and we’re not going to place an academy child on the market, at the least not whereas I’m right here,” Mascherano mentioned, emphasizing the urgency of the scenario and the membership’s dedication to resolve it earlier than the match. This unprecedented scenario has solid a shadow over Inter Miami’s preparations.
A difficult begin to 2025: Participant departures and switch difficulties
Inter Miami’s 2025 pre-season has been removed from ultimate, marked by a number of participant departures and an absence of great new signings. Matías Rojas, Leo Campana, Cole Jensen, Sergii Kryvtsov, Lawson Sunderland, Felipe Valencia, Nicolás Freire, and Franco Negri have all left the membership, leaving important gaps within the squad and making it extremely doable that youth gamers may have to be known as upon for upcoming matches.
This lack of reinforcements locations added strain on the workforce’s remaining gamers, significantly as the beginning of the CONCACAF Champions League and MLS seasons quickly method.
Inter Miami’s monetary constraints are additionally impacting their skill to signal new gamers. The latest switch of Leonardo Campana freed up a delegated participant slot, permitting for a doubtlessly high-earning participant to be added.
The membership is actively pursuing Neymar, whose reported wage of €100 million in Saudi Arabia would require a considerable discount to adjust to MLS wage cap rules. Securing sponsorships from main manufacturers like Apple is a part of Inter Miami’s technique to make such high-profile signings doable.
Regardless of the off-field challenges, Inter Miami’s pre-season continues. The América pleasant kicks off on January 18th, adopted by matches in opposition to Universitario de Deportes (Peru), Sporting San Miguelito (Panama), and Olimpia (Paraguay). The pre-season concludes with a Florida Clasico in opposition to Orlando Metropolis SC earlier than the CONCACAF Champions League and MLS seasons start.
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