Lionel Messi sent shockwaves around the soccer world when he announced that he was joining Inter Miami earlier this month, picking the MLS club over a collection of other renowned suitors.
And it appears that the global superstar’s choice is still sending reverberations across the sport, with the latest example coming in the form of another high-profile signing for the club.
Sergio Busquets, a longtime Barcelona midfielder and former teammate of Messi’s, will reunite with the Argentine forward at Inter Miami, the club announced on Friday afternoon. To reveal the massive signing, the team shared a video on Twitter that featured complimentary quotes about Busquets from some of the sport’s best—including Messi—before ultimately revealing that the statements were about the 34-year-old midfielder.
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) June 23, 2023
Though he ultimately settled on Inter Miami, Busquets had reportedly received interest from a number of clubs, including Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal—the same club that had offered a massive deal to Messi in recent months. However, the Spanish midfielder maintained in an interview with Mundo Deportivo in late May that he didn’t have plans to join the Saudi Pro League.
Busquets, a focal member of Barcelona’s dominant teams during the 2000s and 2010s, announced his departure from the La Liga club last month, ending a sensational 18-year run with the Catalan powerhouse. During his time at Barcelona, the Sabadell, Spain native won nine La Liga titles, three Champions League trophies and seven Copas del Rey alongside greats like Messi, Xavi, Andrés Iniesta and Gerard Piqué.
At the time of his departure, Busquets had made 722 appearances for Barcelona, third-most in the club’s storied history. Of those 722 appearances, 567 came alongside Messi, a tally that will only increase with the veteran duo set to take over Miami and MLS in the coming months.
