Major League Soccer has released its shortlist for end-of-season awards with several Inter Miami players making the list.
Headlined by Lionel Messi’s nomination for the Landon Donovan MLS MVP award, Inter Miami has seven players represented in six categories.
According to MLS rules, every team can submit up to two players per category.
Sergio Busquets received nominations for both the Landon Donovan MLS MVP award and Newcomer of the Year, along with Messi.
Goalkeeper Drake Callender received a second consecutive nomination for Goalkeeper of the Year. Jordi Alba and Kamal Miller received nominations for Defender of the Year, while youngsters Benjamin Cremaschi and Facundo Farias were shortlisted for Young Player of the Year.
Despite not playing too many minutes on the pitch, midfielder Victor Ulloa stood out for his community work, receiving a nomination for the Audi Goals Drive Progress Impact Award.
Lastly, head coach Tata Martino was nominated for Coach of the Year.
Should Inter Miami have nominated Messi for MVP?
It’s not surprising that Inter Miami would nominate these players, considering the team’s highly publicized summer transfer window and their run to the League Cup final.
But, the most eye-brow-raising nomination is Messi as MLS MVP. There’s no denying his impact on Inter Miami and the league, however, the World Cup winner has only played in 247 minutes of actual MLS action, scoring once and assisting twice.
Though Messi will certainly be in contention to win it next season, many believe that it could be too soon to reward the Argentine with a highly respected award.
If anything, Messi may be in pole position to win Newcomer of the Year for his contribution to raising the profile of the game in the United States and leading Inter Miami to a Leagues Cup title.