The Unofficial 2023 Summer Transfer Rumors/Done Deals Thread

[Gin&Juice]

I just looked at tickets for when Miami plays Red Bulls in August, and cheapest ticket is $275 for a seat in the top deck corner. I can usually get seats in lower tier near midfield for under $40. This could be huge for MLS if he actually shows up and plays rather than treating it as a goodwill tour.

[KhalDrogo]

Huge get for the MLS.

[Canesfan2011]

As someone who has season tickets for Inter Miami I really hope he plays and I hope the fans turn out to support the team.

[mfw13]

Call me contrarian, but don't think this is a great move by MLS (if it happens).

In the past few years, MLS has seemed to move past being a "retirement home" for old superstars (Beckham, Henry, Zlatan, Bale, etc.) and instead become a prime destination for good South American players in the prime of their careers. My team, Seattle, is a good example of this, having built around Lodeiro (Uruguay), Ruidiaz (Peru), Joao Paolo (Brazil), Yeimar (Colombia), and Arreaga (Ecuador).

Messi, at this point in his career, is a net negative for any club he plays for (ask PSG fans), in that he contributes nothing offensively or defensively when the ball is not at his feet. And Miami is a horrible team....he's just going to loaf around for 85 minutes a game.

Marketing 1, Soccer 0

[YayNJ]

I was hoping that football would win and he'd go back and play for NOB in Argentina.

Fella has enough money.

[Gin&Juice]

I understand your point and agree that MLS has gotten better as it has moved from a retirement league to a development league. But, I think this one is different. The amount of money and interest that Messi will bring to the league will create opportunities for the league (and Miami) even if the on-field Messi is limited. And, he is still a difference maker when he has the ball. Imagine if Jordan had gone to China after his second three-peat instead of retiring for three years.

[MonsterTruck20]

Originally Posted by YayNJ

I was hoping that football would win.

Football has lost a long time ago.

[glassofwater]

About to get a whole bunch of topps now cards. Maybe a cloth mem card of the press conference table like machado lol.

[YayNJ]

Originally Posted by MonsterTruck20

Football has lost a long time ago.

this is very true

[fadster]

We were this close to Phil Neville managing Messi, this close.

[Jadaki]

Originally Posted by YayNJ

Messi has SIGNED for Inter Miami.

There's going to be some eye opening card prices next season. MLS cards are already hilariously overpriced.

I'm curious if this will impact the next MLS release if he is indeed in it. I'm not sure how desirable a Messi MLS card would be compared to everything else on the market. At my local LCS's the MLS product barely moves.

[YayNJ]

Originally Posted by fadster

We were this close to Phil Neville managing Messi, this close.

I wonder if his impending arrival sped up the sacking of Neville?

Perhaps it was a condition on Messi signing

[hermanotarjeta]

Originally Posted by Gin&Juice

I understand your point and agree that MLS has gotten better as it has moved from a retirement league to a development league. But, I think this one is different. The amount of money and interest that Messi will bring to the league will create opportunities for the league (and Miami) even if the on-field Messi is limited. And, he is still a difference maker when he has the ball. Imagine if Jordan had gone to China after his second three-peat instead of retiring for three years.

That’s what they said about Becks in LA and it was actually a big letdown.

[reddragonthe]

Picked up fire tickets last night for the game. $70 each for good seats. Seats in that section today from the team direct (not 3rd party)? $450.

[panenkacards]

Originally Posted by mfw13

Call me contrarian, but don't think this is a great move by MLS (if it happens).

In the past few years, MLS has seemed to move past being a "retirement home" for old superstars (Beckham, Henry, Zlatan, Bale, etc.) and instead become a prime destination for good South American players in the prime of their careers. My team, Seattle, is a good example of this, having built around Lodeiro (Uruguay), Ruidiaz (Peru), Joao Paolo (Brazil), Yeimar (Colombia), and Arreaga (Ecuador).

Messi, at this point in his career, is a net negative for any club he plays for (ask PSG fans), in that he contributes nothing offensively or defensively when the ball is not at his feet. And Miami is a horrible team....he's just going to loaf around for 85 minutes a game.

Marketing 1, Soccer 0

1. Messi coming in doesn't change the trajectory of where the league is going in regards to player recruitment. ~10% of DPs fit the "washed superstar" bill - there are like 75 DPs in MLS and the current list of "washed stars" is Chicharito, Wanyama, Shaqiri, Douglas Costa, Herrera, Bernadeschi, Insigne, and Benteke.

2. If he's a net negative when the ball isn't at his feet, put the ball at his feet. The man is six months removed from a Golden Ball performance in a World Cup, I think he'll be OK. This isn't Champions League, this isn't Ligue 1, it's MLS.

MLS teams do fine with a classic South American playmaker that doesn't defend - Pozuelo was MVP in 2019, Reynoso is a stud, Blanco, Almada, the list goes on and on. The European game at the CL contender level requires more two-way ability now from 10s.

He has also famously always covered very little ground on the pitch - articles have been written for 10+ years about it.

3. Miami is horrible in part because they've been keeping themselves open for Messi. They have no 10 (because Messi) and can't get rid of Pizarro, so they've been playing with one DP who was injured for the first 1/3 of the season. They've also had to keep dry powder available for a potential friend of Messi to join if necessary.

I don't think this move makes Miami any kind of silverware contender, but it's an absolute coup for the league.

Originally Posted by Ianhatcher

The days of MLS getting stars to come play in the US for a few seasons as they near retirement is over. Middle East is going to own this sport.

It's been over - as I said above, "washed superstars" make up like 10% of MLS DPs these days and most of them are on teams that are uncompetitive. Very few Europe-based stars have the ability to make a team more relevant on the field or in a market unless there's a nationality thing going on.

Originally Posted by reddragonthe

Picked up fire tickets last night for the game. $70 each for good seats. Seats in that section today from the team direct (not 3rd party)? $450.

I don't even see any direct sale tickets anymore.

[Gin&Juice]

Originally Posted by hermanotarjeta

That’s what they said about Becks in LA and it was actually a big letdown.

I think this is a very different situation. Messi is arguably the greatest of all time, coming off a World Cup win, playing in a city with a large Latino population. Beckham was a popular cult hero playing in a city already full of celebrities.

Plus, the interest in soccer in the US is much higher now than it was when Beckham joined.

I also think that Beckham did have a positive impact on the growth of the game in the US. MLS might not be where people imagined, but it has come a long way and much further than people realistically should have expected.

I could be wrong and agree w/ the skeptics about the significance Messi will have in actual games, but I really do think that this is a huge move for MLS (and Miami) that is much different than Beckham or Zlatan or Pele/Beckenbauer/Cruyff.

[panenkacards]

To say Beckham was a letdown is shortsighted.

For one, the Galaxy were great when he was there. The loans to Milan were a bit weird but he was a key part of a team that won two MLS Cups in three visits along with two Shields.

Secondly, MLS' trajectory was meaningfully changed by him coming in. Seattle paid $30M for a team in 2009 and San Diego just paid $500M for theirs.

[YayNJ]

Miami GK suggesting nothing at the club is ready for a big player.

"It would be nice," Marsman told ESPN. “I think our club is just not ready yet. We have a temporary stadium and people can just walk onto the pitch. For example, there are no fences. There is no security when we walk from the training ground to the stadium, but I hope he comes."

[mfw13]

Originally Posted by panenkacards

If he's a net negative when the ball isn't at his feet, put the ball at his feet. The man is six months removed from a Golden Ball performance in a World Cup, I think he'll be OK. This isn't Champions League, this isn't Ligue 1, it's MLS.

Exactly....so what is his motivation to play hard?

At the World Cup he played hard because he wanted to win the World Cup! But he's got zero motivation to play hard in MLS.....you think he cares about whether or not FC Miami makes the playoffs or wins MLS Cup?

He's going to loaf around even more than he did at PSG.....and with one less player working hard out of possession to try and win the ball back, it's going to be even harder for the ball to find its way to his feet.

[jmcca170]

At the end of the day, isn’t that what all these retirees are doing? Get a nice payday to break a sweat twice a week and sign autographs?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jmcca170]

Nice depth signing for Bayern- Raphael Guerrero joins on a free


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[IND2FLA]

Originally Posted by Canesfan2011

As someone who has season tickets for Inter Miami I really hope he plays and I hope the fans turn out to support the team.

As someone else who has IMCF season tickets I hope they can get Yellow lot figured out with Fort Lauderdale.

It is crazy how much of an impact a signing can have....

IMCF a week ago:

- Main parking lot barred due to supposedly $1.3MM owed by Beckham to Ft Lauderdale for building permits.

- Neville fired.

- Bottom of the East without a lot of positives to work with.

- Countless $1-$3+ fee tickets on SeatGeek that weren't selling.

Now tickets are listed at $200+ for nosebleeds and there is major hype. I am getting texts from friends/family who couldn't care less about the sport asking about Messi.

After seeing how the team has played so far this season Messi is a huge signing and going to be a big improvement for IMCF.... I don't care if he is 50 and "loafing".

[panenkacards]

Originally Posted by mfw13

Exactly....so what is his motivation to play hard?

At the World Cup he played hard because he wanted to win the World Cup!But he's got zeromotivation to play hard in MLS.....you think he cares about whether or not FC Miami makes the playoffs or wins MLS Cup?

He's going to loaf around even more than he did at PSG.....and with one less player working hard out of possession to try and win the ball back, it's going to be even harder for the ball to find its way to his feet.

You do not need a 10 who presses to win games in MLS. There is more than a decade of experience to prove this. Not everyone needs to be Nico Lodeiro, Miguel Almiron, or Lucas Zelarayan. They should buy out Pizarro and beef up their midfield - would go a long way.

I'd be surprised if he loafed around more than he did in Paris, because that would be incredibly difficult.

[YayNJ]

Messi was getting booed fairly regularly by the PSG fans towards the end of his stint. He just gave up and couldn't really care less.

I would imagine that Messi will have also been promised first dibs on a franchise, or a massive option on Miami as part of this deal. He's not going to the USA for his love of playing US Soccer. There's going to be something commercial that offsets the oil league.

[jmcca170]

Originally Posted by YayNJ

Messi was getting booed fairly regularly by the PSG fans towards the end of his stint. He just gave up and couldn't really care less.

I would imagine that Messi will have also been promised first dibs on a franchise, or a massive option on Miami as part of this deal. He's not going to the USA for his love of playing US Soccer. There's going to be something commercial that offsets the oil league.

Ownership stake is on the table… he’s also getting a cut of the MLS subscription money that Apple TV + makes, as well as Adidas money too.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk