It hasn’t taken long for Lionel Messi to immerse himself in the United States. The greatest soccer player in the world is showing exactly why he’s the greatest soccer player in the world. Messi hasn’t even officially played an MLS game for Inter Miami CF and he’s already scored nine goals for his new club in the Leagues Cup, an annual soccer competition between clubs from Major League Soccer and Liga MX in North America.
Messi will have a chance to take home his first trophy in the United States as Inter Miami will face fellow MLS-side Nashville SC in the Leagues Cup Final on Saturday night.
Ahead of the matchup, Messi was asked by a reporter regarding his evaluation of the level of competition in the U.S. It didn’t take long for the Argentinian national to cite the growth of the U.S. Men’s National Team in his response.
EL FÚTBOL EN ESTADOS UNIDOS Y LA COMPARACIÓN CON MÉXICO, según Leo Messi…
📺 #SportsCenter | #ESPNenStarPlus pic.twitter.com/zjWdPJsIch
— SportsCenter (@SC_ESPN) August 17, 2023
Messi’s response, which was roughly translated to English by the account—USMNT Only—was very telling.
“U.S. Soccer has really grown a lot in just the last year and the results recently clinched by the U.S. team really prove that they’ve become a major force in the World Cup, super competitive, matching their opponents blow for blow in every game,” Messi said.
Lionel Messi on the USMNT 🇺🇸
“U.S. Soccer has really grown a lot in just the last year and the results recently clinched by the U.S. team really prove that, they've become a major force in the World Cup, super competitive, matching their opponents blow for blow in every game." pic.twitter.com/0I5WxZls21
— USMNT Only (@usmntonly) August 17, 2023
The United States has come a long way since missing the World Cup in 2018. While many were expecting more from their results in the most recent World Cup in Qatar, it’s clear that the rest of the world is starting to take notice, even Messi, which should certainly hold a lot of weight when considering the quality of his game.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.