Has Lionel Messi’s debut season at Inter Miami been a success? USMNT star DeAndre Yedlin explains why it isn't despite historic Leagues Cup triumph

The Florida-based outfit endured a disastrous start to the current campaign, but saw collective fortunes improve dramatically once seven-time Ballon d’Or Messi was welcomed onto the books at DRV PNK Stadium over the summer.

Messi made an immediate impact, inspiring Inter Miami to Leagues Cup glory within weeks of his arrival, but an unfortunate injury saw him sit out the U.S. Open Cup final and the closing stages of a failed bid to reach the MLS play-offs. USMNT star Yedlin has said when summing up the season as a whole: “If you were to say in June that we’re going to end the season with a trophy, you’d probably deem it a success. But after July, if you’re to say you’re going to end with only one trophy, you probably wouldn’t deem it a success. It’s how you look at it. As professionals, we want to win everything. So, for me, it’s not a success. We won the first trophy in club history, and that’s great, but we could have won Open Cup and wanted more from the play-offs.”

Goalkeeper Drake Callender – who has also forced his way into the United States national team squad – believes there is cause for optimism at Inter Miami heading forward, with his assessment going: “If you look at 2023 as a whole, we won Leagues Cup, we made it to the final of Open Cup, and unfortunately, we won’t be going any further in the league, but to make two finals and win one is a good sign we are headed the right direction. But not making the play-offs hurts. We want to win it all. For the next two games, we will be playing for pride and setting the stage for next year.”

Messi’s 2023 campaign at club level may have already come to a close, but he will be back for more in 2024 – having committed to an initial two-and-a-half-year contract – and will be hoping to challenge for more honours next term once fully settled in new surroundings.