Alexis Lalas has criticized Inter Miami and MLS for how they’ve promoted Lionel Messi despite the forward not featuring at all on Saturday against Atlanta United.
Speaking on the State of the Union Podcast, the former USMNT defender slammed the league and Herons for how they have not made it clear if Messi will play or not in MLS fixtures.
Messi didn’t travel to Georgia this weekend with news breaking the night before the game, leading to many fans being disappointed that the announcement hadn’t been made earlier.
Given his stature in the game, many MLS fans have turned out to watch just Messi for Inter Miami, bringing with it a hike in ticket prices and hype in the league the likes of which has never been seen before.
And Lalas has called for MLS to do better, with the pundit saying: “They have used Messi since the moment it was announced to sell and to hype absolutely everything both on and off the field.
“I think that, whether it’s Inter Miami or MLS, if they have information and he is not going to play, they need to make it very clear. Especially before using Messi for all this soccer promotion.
Lalas nails MLS and Inter Miami’s treatment of Messi on the head
Few want to see Inter Miami becoming a traveling act with Messi and company entertaining the masses, yet the Florida franchise have to be better in updating fans on if the 36-year-old will play.
A good 99% of fans watching Inter Miami this season and next year will be there to watch Messi, and MLS and the Herons have a duty of care to announce way ahead of time if the forward is featuring.
Indeed, Messi at his age can’t be expected to play every game, but Inter Miami must be clear on if the attacker will play as a sign of clarity to supporters, who could travel thousands of miles to watch the Argentine.