Lionel Messi has been credited with turning Inter Miami into the “Real Madrid of MLS”, with Josef Martinez detailing a stunning raising of standards.
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Argentine moved to Florida in 2023Made immediate impact on & off the fieldEveryone else forced to raise their gameFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Venezuelan frontman Martinez was already in South Florida when eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi arrived in the summer of 2023. He made an immediate impact with the Herons, as Leagues Cup success was savoured within weeks of his arrival.
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The most decorated player of all-time has brought several familiar faces along with him – including Luis Suarez and Sergio Busquets – helping to make the Herons more competitive while attracting greater interest from a global audience.
WHAT JOSEF MARTINEZ SAID
Martinez has told the podcast: “When I joined Inter Miami, it was El Combate [The Combat] FC. When it became official (Messi’s signing), it went from being the worst team in MLS to the Real Madrid of MLS.
“Before Messi’s first training session, not even people on Instagram knew us, not even the club’s own journalists came. That was the first time I met my godfather, and people who didn’t even know I existed were writing to me. Outside, there were 1,000 journalists – when before, we had seen maybe one. And there were 50,000 people at the first training session. It changed overnight.”
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Martinez added on Messi: “He had already won everything, and yet he was there and was the first to arrive. He might be the most disciplined, but with us – or at least with me – he was great. That made you feel like you had to match his level. Before, there were players who couldn’t even complete a pass.
“[Robert] Taylor couldn’t score on God himself. Messi arrived, and he became the team’s top scorer. Everyone’s level rose. From being a team nobody watched, to being the biggest spotlight in the league – you couldn’t afford to fail.”