Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo could yet make it to ‘Last Dance’! Inter Miami would ‘enjoy a rematch’ with Al-Nassr after 6-0 defeat in Saudi Arabia.
What happened?
The Herons were humiliated 6-0 when they faced the Saudi Pro League outfit as part of their pre-season schedule in 2024. Tata Martino’s side is still getting up to speed and appeared out of sync against a team in the middle of their domestic season.
WHAT GRESSEL SAYS
Messi received only seven minutes off the bench during Inter Miami’s final game in the Middle East, while Ronaldo did not play at all due to injury. They may, however, meet paths again at some point, as Gressel stated when asked if the shocking result means MLS is currently behind the Pro League: “I don’t think you can compare. We are very early on in the process, only in our third week together as a team after a long couple months off. So, you can’t really compare. I think we would love to have a rematch at some point. That’s the competitor in me, maybe in an official competition like a Club World Cup.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Inter Miami has lost three of its four friendly games and has yet to win one, but Gressel is not reading too much into form at this point. The USMNT star continued, “Ultimately, when the moment comes, when it counts for us, that’s when we want to be at our best, and these games are valuable, even if they hurt a lot. I believe that having games like these helps players prepare for the season. These aren’t your typical preseason games, which I’ve played in the past against other MLS teams while wearing training gear. These are real games, which will bode well for us.
He went on and said: “Obviously not the result we wanted, but obviously, a lot of lessons to take. There’s a lot for us to learn from, for us to grow. There’s a ton of stuff we can look at on film, but it starts with us having a good start to the game. You can’t be down 3-0 in 12 minutes into the game. Those are lessons you learn in pre-season.”
What’s next for Messi and Inter Miami?
Inter Miami has now traveled to the Middle East to meet with the Hong Kong Select XI and the Japanese club Vissel Kobe. They will begin their 2024 MLS campaign against Real Salt Lake on February 21.
