Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni has defended the level of Major League Soccer amid Lionel Messi’s red-hot start to life in North America.
Messi has scored an incredible nine goals in just six Leagues Cup games since making his Inter Miami debut last month. His latest strike on Tuesday helped Miami to a shockingly easy 4-1 win over Philadelphia in the semifinal.
The ease with which Messi and his longtime Barcelona teammates Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba have settled in has led to some derision over the perceived level of MLS.
But Scaloni, who coached Messi and co. to a World Cup win in 2022, has said he doesn’t think the league is low quality.
“I don’t think the level is bad,” Scaloni said at a press conference in Miami on Tuesday.
“On the contrary, I was at Inter Miami’s game versus Charlotte (FC) and I didn’t think it was bad. In fact the level was acceptable. Every football match is difficult. You have to play them. There’s no doubt that (MLS) is a league that’s trending up. It’s improving and it’s attracting footballers to come and play here. It’s a country that’s also attractive. But I can see the challenges that MLS presents and I’ve seen good teams here.
“I know that this league is going to continue to improve. There are some very good players here and even better players will make their way here.”
Scaloni was speaking at an event to mark the Argentina Football Federation’s planned expansion into North America, with a large training complex near Miami serving as the centerpiece.
The coach said that having a home base in North America would be crucial ahead of the 2024 Copa América and 2026 World Cup, an event he is still hopeful Messi will play in despite having said multiple times that 2022 would be his last World Cup.
“In principle it is enough that he plays football and is happy,” Scaloni said of Messi. “For us it is already a step forward. And because of how he is, with his competitive DNA, wherever he is, he is always going to compete. So let’s hope he can be at the next World Cup. I won’t be the one to say no, have no doubt about that.”
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