Inter Miami is making everything in its power to make Lionel Messi feel at home. After previously signing Messi’s former teammate Sergio Busquets, the MLS side now also hired Gerardo “Tata” Martino as their new head coach.
Martino, who last served as a head coach of Mexico’s national team, arrives as a replacement for recently-fired Phil Neville. Inter made the move official on Tuesday.
“Tata is a highly respected figure in our sport whose track record speaks for itself,” said Inter’s co-owner David Beckham in a statement. “We are confident that his achievements in the game and experience as a head coach will inspire our team and excite our fans and look forward to seeing the impact he will have on and off the field.”
Messi never tried to hide the fact that “Tata” Martino is one of his favorite coaches. Martino is legend of Newell’s Old Boys, Messi’s boyhood club. The two also collaborated together at Barcelona and Argentina’s national team.
Inter Miami now hopes that getting Messi and Martino back together, as well as the addition of Busquets, can help the club turn around their fortunes. Miami is currently last in Eastern Conference, with only five wins and 15 points in 18 matches in 2023.
This will also be Martino’s return to MLS, where he had significant success coaching Atlanta United. With Martino at the helm, Atlanta won the MLS Cup in 2018.
