Lionel Messi’s preseason regime revealed by Inter Miami coach

For Inter Miami, there is a sense that the 2025 MLS season represents the best chance to win a championship with the superstar cast of Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez and co. leading the team.

The Herons cruised to the Supporters’ Shield last year but were bounced from the postseason in Round One, losing to unfancied Atlanta United. After putting up incredible regular season numbers, the postseason drop-off was partially attributed to a lack of fitness.

Both Messi and Suárez will be 38 by the time the MLS Cup playoffs begin in the fall and managing their fitness across a busy 2025 schedule will be key. That job falls to new head coach Javier Mascherano, who will be eager to manage Messi’s minutes carefully during the preseason preparations.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the opener against Club América, Mascherano has asked how much Messi would feature in the preseason. He replied: “We’ll see. The objective is to get everyone ready for official games.”

Mascherano continued: “We have several pre-season games and we’ll see how many minutes he’ll play based on how he feels, we don’t want to take any risks. The overall feeling is good and we’re happy with how everyone came back from vacation, it allowed us to demand from them from the first day.”

What is Inter Miami’s preseason schedule?

Last year Inter Miami’s preseason schedule took them to El Salvador, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong and Japan. It was designed to make the most of Messi’s incredible global appeal but ended in controversy when the Argentine was forced to sit out a game. Fans in Hong Kong had paid up to $600 per ticket to see him in the flesh but Messi sat on the bench, forcing the organising company to issue partial refunds to furious supporters.

This time around Miami have arranged a more limited schedule, something that their aging stars will surely appreciate.

The Club América game kick-starts the preseason schedule in front of a passionate crowd in Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas. The Mexican champions have already began their domestic campaign and will be eager to impress in front of a considerable ‘away’ contingent in the United States.

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