ATLANTA — Inter Miami have already defied expectations at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, managing two draws against Al Ahly and Palmeiras plus a shocking 2-1 victory over FC Porto to qualify for the round of 16. But the euphoria and celebrations that accompanied the achievement were quickly interrupted by the realization that the club would now confront Paris Saint-Germain in the first knockout round, meeting on Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Miami would have narrowly avoided playing PSG if they had held on to their 2-0 lead late in the second half against Palmeiras in the last group stage game, but a seven-minute spell of errors and distractions allowed the Brazilian team to tie the score. With a win, Inter Miami would have faced Botafogo in the round of 16 instead of Europe’s reigning champions.
When asked whether the team preferred to face the Brazilian club in the knockout round, Miami defender Noah Allen responded, “Yeah, probably.”
For the younger players on the Inter Miami squad, the upcoming match poses a daunting and new challenge: 90 minutes against the freshly crowned European champions and one of the world’s best teams. Benjamin Cremaschi and Allen, two Inter Miami homegrown players who before the Club World Cup had never even played a competitive match against a club outside the Concacaf region, will now be tasked with marking some of the game’s elite, from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to Ousmane Dembélé.
For Luis Suárez, Lionel Messi, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, the round-of-16 game is also a competitive reunion with their former Barcelona coach, PSG manager Luis Enrique. Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano also played under Luis Enrique during his time with the LaLiga giants and will now lead his own team against one of the people who shaped him as a player.
“He has probably been one of the best coaches I’ve had in my career,” Mascherano said on Saturday of Luis Enrique. “Yes, he was a very important coach, not only for everything I’ve learned from him, but during the time I had him, he was one of the ones who convinced me to stay at Barcelona. A great coach who has proven it not only at Barcelona and now in Paris, but also with the Spanish national team. … I’ve said about being able to test yourself against these types of coaches, against these types of teams, it’s a challenge afterwards.”
And for Messi, the game holds an additional meaning. For the first time in his career, Messi will face one of his former clubs in a competitive setting, confronting PSG after his tumultuous tenure with the Parisian side. The Argentine forward reluctantly joined PSG in August 2021, just a couple days after saying an emotional goodbye to Barcelona. Despite his desire to remain with the LaLiga giants, the team’s financial situation made him unable to re-sign with the club unless other players on the squad took large salary cuts. When Barcelona couldn’t make it work, Messi was forced to look elsewhere.
At the time, Messi admitted PSG matched his ambitions and that it was an exciting prospect of teaming up with Kylian Mbappé and Neymar in Ligue 1. But the relationship between Messi and PSG ownership took a turn when he was suspended for taking an unauthorized trip to Saudi Arabia. The Argentine forward also revealed that he felt upset after returning from winning the World Cup and not receiving any sort of recognition from PSG.
“I was the only player of the [squad] that didn’t get a [club] recognition,” Messi said.
Mascherano acknowledged that the spotlight on Messi means everything about him garners attention. “We, as Argentinians, know what’s been generated since the World Cup and all this history,” he said. “The most important thing is that Leo is doing well, Leo plays for us, that’s what makes us feel more at ease.”
Despite winning two league titles during his time at PSG, scoring 21 goals and recording 20 assists, Messi admitted to having a difficult time adapting to the club. On June 1, 2023, former coach Christophe Galtier announced Messi would leave PSG. Two days after the announcement, Messi played his final match with the club amid a hostile reaction from the fan base. Supporters booed the player, marking the end of a complicated period.
“I spent two years that I didn’t enjoy. I wasn’t happy on a day-to-day basis, with the training sessions, the games. I found it hard to adapt to all that,” Messi said about his time with PSG.
On June 8, Messi shocked the world by revealing he would soon join Inter Miami. Two years later, animosity between Messi and PSG remains. Even French news outlet L’Equipe riled up the public from a PSG standpoint by printing Messi on the cover of Friday’s edition with the words: “Not everything is forgiven.”
Mascherano is counting on a revenge-fueled performance from his captain. “For us, it’s better if Messi plays angry,” Mascherano told ESPN. “It’s clear that for us it’s better if he plays angry, because he’s one of those players who, when he has something on his mind, gives an extra effort.”
Alba said that although the reunion between Messi and PSG might elicit certain emotions, Messi’s goal will always be to triumph.
“At the end of the day, Leo wants to win every game like all the great players do,” Alba said. “I know the feelings he has towards Barça, where we played together. I was not there with him at PSG, he was there for two years and only he knows what happened.”
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Sunday’s match against PSG also marks the first real time Messi enters the round of 16 of a tournament as a clear underdog. It is a David vs. Goliath situation for Inter Miami, even when boasting arguably the world’s best player on their roster. Despite the imbalance between the teams, Inter Miami aren’t afraid to dream big.
“Well, for me, [PSG are] the ones who play the best football today. They’re very versatile, with very good wide players, and guys in midfield who have the ball. I think, overall, they’re the most complete team for me, and we’ll see how far we can go and try to compete,” Alba said.
“And why not? Why not dream of beating the European champion? It will be very difficult. We know the quality of all the players, and for me, [Luis Enrique is] the best coach in the world. I know him very well. I mean, it’ll be difficult for us [to win] I’m sure, but why not? This is football, and it’s 90-something minutes, and well, why not dream?”
Alba’s sentiment echoed throughout the mixed zone and the news conference room after Miami’s final group stage match.
“We’re going to play Sunday against a great team. Probably they are better than us,” Mascherano said. “But in football, you never know. If there’s one thing that makes this sport the most beautiful of all, it’s this,” Mascherano continued. “It often gives a team that’s inferior the opportunity to compete, and even win.”
With almost nothing to lose and the world’s respect to gain, Inter Miami prepare for their biggest challenge yet.
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