Julian Gressel has detailed how Lionel Messi asked the midfielder to give the Inter Miami huddle pre-game and during halftime.
The USMNT star has quickly established himself as a key play for the Herons after being signed by Tata Martino in the off-season alongside Luis Suarez.
An MLS veteran and one of the most experienced players in the division, Gressel’s record in the division and working under Martino has worked wonders this season, especially alongside new signings adjusting to Inter Miami.
Lionel Messi told Julian Gressel to deliver Inter Miami huddles
And speaking on the Player/Manager podcast, Gressel has now revealed that Messi has asked the versatile midfielder to deliver the pre-game huddle in both Spanish and English, after the departure of DeAndre Yedlin.
Gressel said: “When Yedlin left, we talked about how he would always speak in the team huddle before the game, so Leo actually asked me to speak in the team huddle, which is obviously a huge honor for me. He [Leo] came up to me and said, in English, ‘You speak to the team.’ I was like yes, okay, sounds good.
“Then obviously you’re like ‘What are you going to say to these guys?’ In the second leg against Nashville, I said something in Spanish. I said, ‘Let’s win the first five minutes and then we’ll win the game.’ Super quick. Super simple. And then we scored after seven minutes, not quite five minutes, but I felt pretty good about my pregame speech.
“It’s a cool moment when he comes up to you and asks you to say something to the team. To have that trust in me is something that is a great feeling and something that shows me I’ve done the right things over the last few months to to earn his trust and then to pay it back with a little bit of Spanish, he [Leo] thought it was funny and he laughed a little bit.”
Lionel Messi is fully invested with new MLS club
Messi’s happiness at Inter Miami has been a big talking point since the Argentine superstar moved to MLS last year, with the attacker settling quickly into life in Florida.
And the forward’s actions both on and off the pitch paint a picture of a player who is fully emersed in the culture and surroundings of his new team, with Messi seemingly also getting along with his new teammates.
Entrusting Gressel to lead the Inter Miami huddle is a big sign that Messi wants his teammates to lead by example, and the USA international has been fantastic since moving to Florida this winter.