Just like Lionel Messi! Giorgio Chiellini explains why he never ends a game with his own shirt as LAFC defender rivals Inter Miami superstar in MLS swap stakes

The veteran defender is in the process of chasing down back-to-back MLS Cup crowns in California, with the legendary centre-half still going strong at 39 years of age. He is another of those to have helped raise the profile of the domestic game in America, with the Juventus icon admired by every rival that he locks horns with.

The same is true of Messi at Inter Miami – with there forever a mass scramble to get his shirt at the end of any contest – and Chiellini has told MLSsoccer.com: “I never finish a game with my jersey. I have every time exchanged my jersey and it's something that I am really happy to do. I have a huge legacy with the team, but I feel I have also a huge legacy with MLS, with the league. I’m really enjoying trying to show that also to my opponents, to every team that I face, because a lot of them told me at the end of the game and just said, ‘I'm seeing how much you enjoy, I'm happy for you and I'm happy you are playing here.’ That type of thing, I think for me it was more important than just the performance.”

Chiellini, who has faced Inter Miami in 2023 and landed a Messi shirt for his daughter, will see his contract in Los Angeles expire at the end of the year. He added on potentially playing on for at least one more season – taking him beyond his 40th birthday: “I have to talk with family, club and decide. I don't want to take a decision now, because I'm too focused on play-offs. I think that when everything will be finished and we are more relaxed, we will take the best decision.”

LAFC are set to face the Houston Dynamo in the MLS Western Conference final on Saturday. Chiellini may end up bidding farewell at the end of that encounter, but Messi will be back for more in 2024 as he still has two years left to run on his deal in Florida – with there an option there for an extension through 2026.