Phil Neville makes admission on Inter Miami trying to sign Messi

Phil Neville has admitted that Inter Miami are interested in Lionel Messi and Sergio Busquets. Speaking to The Times, Neville said that both players are on his radar in what would be a huge coup for Major League Soccer.

Affirming his plans, the former Manchester United man said: “I’m not going to deny [it and say] there isn’t truth in the speculation that we’re interested in Lionel Messi and Sergio Busquets.

“We want to bring the best players in the world to this football club. Messi and Busquets are the two that stand out more in recent years. They’re great players who would still be a massive benefit to this organization. For MLS, it would be a game-changer.

“Since I joined Miami, I think we’ve been linked with every single top player in world football. From Sergio Ramos, Dani Alves, Robert Lewandowski, Willian, Cesc Fàbregas, Luis Suarez… all of them you can rattle off.

“We’re always going to be linked with the best players in the world. We had Gonzalo Higuaín and Blaise Matuidi. Now we’ve got the opportunity to bring in some new designated players [who fall outside the league’s salary cap] following their retirements.”

Earlier this month, French publication L’Equipe said that Messi is considering whether to stay with Paris Saint-Germain beyond the current season and that Miami are leading the chase to sign him.

Busquets is still playing at Barcelona but his contract, much like Messi’s, also expires at the end of the season. He played alongside Messi during his golden years at Barcelona and has also been linked with a move to Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr.

Neville, meanwhile, has never made any attempt to hide his interest in Messi – he even spoke of the team’s efforts to sign him when Miami returned from the offseason to prepare for the 2023 campaign.

Speaking on January 9, he said: “We want to bring the best players in the world to this club and he is probably the best player, so for us the landscape has not changed at all.

“With any deal for any DP (Designated Player) of that level, it’s complicated. It takes time.”

Messi is on a salary of around £1.2m ($1.45m) a week in France and would need to take a pay cut to join the David Beckham-owned team.

He would still expect to be the best-paid soccer player in America, and the move would be a significant chance for Messi to further build his brand.

In the meantime, Neville and Miami begin the 2023 MLS season against Montreal on Saturday night.

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