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Inter Miami head coach Gerardo Martino has poured cold water on a potential Lionel Messi loan return to Barcelona in January after the MLS franchise’s playoff hopes came to an end with a loss to Cincinnati on Saturday night. Miami was playing catchup when former Barca trio Messi, Sergio Busquets, and Jordi Alba joined the team, sitting bottom of the Eastern Conference.<\/p>\n
They looked like making up the points difference, especially after winning the Leagues Cup, putting MLS rivals on notice ahead of the return to league action. However, the first defeat for Messi in Miami colors brought the Sunshine State-based franchise’s season to an end.<\/p>\n
Messi didn’t start the game and was unable to make an impact when he did enter play in the 55th minute. It was Alvaro Barreal’s 78th-minute strike that sealed victory for the Eastern Conference’s first-place team, Cincinnati. Miami coming up short in their playoff hunt has raised questions about whether Messi could return to play for longtime club Barca on loan in January.<\/p>\n
However, head coach Martino says a temporary transfer in the MLS offseason hasn’t been discussed yet. “Is he going for fun? Maybe he’s going to visit Barcelona,” said Martino. “Other than that, I don’t know anything else about it.”<\/p>\n
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Miami and Messi have two more games left to go, both against Charlotte, before the regular season can officially be concluded, but whether Messi features is another matter. The 36-year-old, who captained Argentina to a World Cup victory last December, scored 12 goals in the combined 13 league and cup matches he played.<\/p>\n
He will now join Argentina for 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Paraguay and Peru next week and the country will have to find a way to keep the attacker fit for November’s qualifiers against Uruguay and Brazil. As for January onward, a return to Barca would be fairytale-like. Messi did want to return to Barca in the summer before joining Miami but a concrete offer failed to materialize, as the Catalan Club figured out its financial standing.<\/p>\n
Don’t miss… <\/strong> We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you’ve consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info<\/p>\n Messi would significantly boost boss Xavi and his team’s chances of retaining their Spanish league title. They’re currently third behind the shock of the season so far, Girona, and table toppers Real Madrid. “He doesn’t see things as clearly and we have to respect him,” Xavi said after Messi agreed to join Inter Miami and not Barca.<\/p>\n “We often don’t put ourselves in someone else’s situation, we lack empathy. Being Leo Messi can’t be easy. He never has any peace and has to be a 10 in everything. He has seen that he hasn’t had a good time and he doesn’t want this kind of pressure, it’s normal. The excitement was generated because we both talked, we have talked a lot. We were all looking forward to it, first for him, then for me, and then for the club. But the circumstances didn’t work out… He wanted to lower the level of pressure and tension. He wants a quieter life.”<\/p>\n
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