Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi (10) jogs to his position during the first half of an MLS soccer match against Sporting Kansas City, Saturday, April 13, 2024, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Nick Tre. Smith)
Perhaps the novelty or awe inspired by the presence of Lionel Messi is wearing off for the New York Red Bulls as they prepare to take on Inter Miami on Saturday down in Fort Lauderdale, FL.
“Of course, playing against Messi is special, but… it’s just a normal game,” Red Bulls forward Dante Vanzeir said. “It’s a tough opponent. It’s not only Messi, they have a lot of big guys running around.”
Just last summer when the legendary Argentinian talisman made his Major League Soccer debut with Inter Miami against the Red Bulls in Harrison, NJ, the talk was understandably centered around the disbelief of playing against the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, who at the time was just eight months removed from winning the World Cup.
It showed during his 30 minutes on the pitch when he came on as a second-half sub. The Red Bulls were caught ball-watching, practically star-struck, as Messi received the ball in the middle of the box in the 89th minute. He threaded a pass to the right wing to Benjamin Cremaschi, who instantly played it back to the middle where Messi’s unmarkable run found him all alone with nothing but an open net in front of him leaving Red Bulls keeper Carlos Coronel without a prayer.
More than eight months have passed since Inter Miami’s 2-0 win over New York and with it comes a significantly different looking side.
“It’s a big challenge for us,” head coach Sandro Schwarz said on Thursday. “Our preparation the whole week and our training session and our video meetings the whole week was that we are playing against Inter Miami. Not only against Messi.”
In his first year as head coach, Schwarz has the Red Bulls — who clawed their way into the postseason during the final week of the 2023 season — in…
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