Inter Miami coach Guillermo Hoyos said he will be having conversations about Lionel Messi‘s return to action following his 2026 World Cup participation with Argentina.
Messi and Rodrigo De Paul returned to training with Inter Miami this week after featuring in the World Cup final against Spain on July 19 in New Jersey.
“We’ve been talking, in that regard. He only just got back. We haven’t really had the chance to have a proper conversation yet,” Hoyos said on Friday. “We’re genuinely happy that they’ve returned and are back at the club. It’s great to see them here.”
Messi recorded eight goals and four assists at the World Cup to lead Argentina to the World Cup final for the second consecutive time. He played for the entirety of the 120-minute match, while De Paul featured for 70 minutes.
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Messi and De Paul took a couple days off following the final, missing Inter Miami’s games against the Chicago Fire FC and CF Montréal. The two players were also excused without being penalized from the MLS All Star match after being selected for the roster.
Inter Miami is set to host the Columbus Crew at Nu Stadium on Saturday before preparing to compete in Leagues Cup on Aug. 5 against Atlético San Luis.
Hoyos insists the schedule will become difficult in the next couple of weeks due to the volume of games between the two competitions.
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“I think it’s very tough, simply because of the sheer volume of matches, there’s going to be a real congestion of games over several weeks, leaving very little time to catch your breath or rest,” Hoyos said.
“It’s basically just: match, game, rest, game, and so on. It’s difficult; the match load is heavy and takes a real toll, competition itself is draining.”
Inter Miami won the 2023 Leagues Cup and reached the 2025 final before falling to the Seattle Sounders FC.
