After they lost 0-1 to Eastern Conference leaders FC Cincinnati last Saturday night, Inter Miami where Lionel Messi plays, have officially been eliminated from the MLS playoffs.
While they have two matches left, home and on the road to Charlotte FC on 19 and 21 October, Inter Miami will no longer gather enough points to secure their place in the playoffs. Miami is 14th on the league table, one place above Toronto in the 15th.
After their match on October 21st, Inter Miami will not play another game in the MLS until late February 2024, making Messi available for loan to any other clubs that want to have him.
La Liga’s Barcelona FC, where Messi played for 17 seasons is being linked to his return.
According to a report by Football Espana, Inter Miami, was rock bottom in the MLS standing and them reaching the playoffs seemed like an impossible task until Messi, Sergio Busquets, and Jordi Alba arrived in the summer.
Miami was advancing on the table, until the ex-Barca player suffered an injury last month, which saw him miss several games over the last few weeks. Messi came back to the field last Saturday night, but could not save the club from losing.
That loss signifies that their two games against Charlotte FC later this month, will be their last one of the season. Since Messi made his debut, Inter won only one of the six games he missed and lost just one of the 13 he played.
