The former Barcelona forwards share a training camp in Miami after four years.
This Saturday morning, Leo Messi and Luis Suárez starred in the long-awaited reunion as teammates at Inter Miami, marking the start of the MLS preseason.
The footballers, who had shared a locker room at Barcelona, were the last to leave the locker room. Both participated in the first training session of a season in which Inter Miami starts as the main favorite to be MLS champion, as well as the rest of the competitions it will face: Concacaf Champions Cup, US Open Cup and Leagues Cup.
Since Suárez left Barcelona in 2020 for Atlético de Madrid, four years passed before both players met again on a team. During this time, Suárez wore the shirts of Nacional in Uruguay and Gremio in Brazil.
The Argentine and the Uruguayan, known for their close friendship, were visibly smiling and shared moments of camaraderie during the training session. Messi’s inseparable bodyguard, Yassine Cheuko, was also present at the training camp.
Soccer is back 😍😍 pic.twitter.com/n4pU3BMcgc
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) January 13, 2024
For his part, coach ‘Tata’ Martino, leading Inter Miami, expressed: “I don’t feel pressure. It is a place where I have the possibility of leading great footballers, having a competitive team that we still have to finish shaping. Depending on what we have, there are responsibilities, obligations, and we have to try, as we did last year. Yes, we are in a place where the eyes of the world are focused on the great figures we have.”
“Surely throughout the season we will need to take precautions with his knee, but today he worked very well and looks in good shape. We are happy about this. “I hope to see what he has done in the last fifteen years, to find a very good version of him, like the one he showed last year with Gremio,” Martino indicated.
Inter Miami has established itself as a club that has renowned players in its lineups. However, according to their coach, this situation should not affect the players’ minute management.
“There is something that was difficult last year, that of selling more or fewer tickets, that they need to know if they are playing… I would like them to play all the games, but we cannot do it based on selling more or less tickets. “We have the obligation to take care of them and take care of the team,” he concluded.