INTER MIAMI
Inter Miami boss Tata Martino says Lionel Messi may not play full match in Noche d’Or tribute game
Tata Martino confirmed that Messi will feature against NYCFC at the DRV PNK Stadium, but he did not guarantee that he will play the entire match.
Inter Miami continue with their preparation for the upcoming special night in which they will celebrate Lionel Messi’s eighth Ballon d’Or. The one-off game will take place this Friday at the DRV PNK Stadium in the form of a friendly against NYCFC (Friday 10 November, 2023, 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.) as part of a special night to commemorate the triumph of the Argentine star as the best player in the world.
On Wednesday, ahead of the tie, manager Gerardo Tata Martino spoke to the media before midweek training which saw The Herons prepare for what is set to be the last game the squad play in 2023.
Messi will ‘of course’ play against NYCFC, confirms Tata
In the mixed zone, Martino confirmed that since it is a celebration of Lionel Messi’s eighth Ballon d’Or, the Argentine will indeed play a part in the game against New York City FC. However, he also remarked that the player is unlikely to see out the entire 90 minutes of the match.
The decision comes as just days after the friendly game, Lionel Messi must report to the Argentine National Team to face two huge Conmebol qualifier dates where the Albiceleste will go up against big-hitters Uruguay and Brazil in a pair of mammoth-sized matches.
“Leo Messi is in good physical condition and of course he will play on Friday against New York City FC” said Martino, “but it is possible that he will not play the entire game”.
Inter Miami look for pre-season friendlies abroad
As the club prepare for the big night, work is going on behind the scenes as Martino and Inter Miami are already thinking about the 2024 season. As part of their preparations, the club intend to carry out a long pre-season of at least 40 days, in which they will look to play some friendly matches abroad. This idea was confirmed by the Miami manager himself.
“It is something that we have been talking about with the sports area and the commercial area over the past few days and we will try to take into account all the needs that the club has, obviously giving priority to the sport side of things. But we are analyzsing being here in Florida and we are analysing having some friendly matches abroad: obviously this has not yet been confirmed, but we are looking at this scenario, to have a preseason of around 40 days,” Tata explained.
The search for a foreign friendly comes after the club cancelled a tour of China after ticket confusion and last-minute match rearrangements which saw the MLS side eventually take the decision to back out of the lucrative trip to Asian continent, citing “bureaucratic and commercial issues”.