Messi Mania is in full swing in America as huge posters pop up at the flagship Adidas store in New York… despite Inter Miami not yet officially announcing the arrival of their new star
Lionel Messi still isn’t officially an Inter Miami player, but that hasn’t stopped America from giving a grand welcome to its new football hero.
In New York, 2,000 miles from Messi’s new home in Florida, the windows of adidas’ flagship store are lined with mock-ups of MLS’s biggest star, alongside the slogan “Impossible Is Nothing.”
In photos captured by DailyMail.com, the sportswear giant’s Broadway location is covered in photos of Messi wearing his new Inter Miami strip, even before donning it himself.
The windows of adidas’ flagship store in New York are full of mock-ups of Lionel Messi
A sign reads “Bienvenido A Miami” above a photo of Messi and Inter Miami merchandise
The 36-year-old is expected to make his debut this month following his departure from Paris Saint-Germain
The Argentina World Cup winner announced his impending move to Miami last month, following the end of a two-year spell at French giant Paris Saint-Germain.
Messi will be revealed later this month ahead of his scheduled debut against Mexico’s Cruz Azul on July 21.
But the impact of his move to MLS can already be seen on Inter Miami’s social media pages.
In the 24 hours following its decision to join Major League Soccer, Inter Miami gained more than 5 million Instagram followers – from about 1 million to 6.1 million. Their number of followers now stands at 9 million.
It will be on the pitch where Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino hopes Messi can make an even bigger difference soon.
Miami is bottom of the Eastern Conference heading into the last eight games of the regular season.
Messi is plastered on Broadway windows next to the slogan ‘impossible is nothing’
Martino, who took over after Phil Neville’s sacking last month, has worked with Messi at both Barcelona and the Argentina national team.
Reports suggest that some of Messi’s former teammates could also join him in Miami. Sergio Busquets has already followed him to Florida, while Sergio Ramos, Jordi Alba and Luis Suarez have also been linked.
Reports claimed that the club will confirm Alba’s signing as early as Friday in what would be another massive coup for Miami.
According to the Miami announcesit’s basically a foregone conclusion, with Alba taking a “drastic pay cut” on his $24 million salary at former team Barcelona, who he recently left when his contract expired.
His contract is believed to be for two and a half years with an option for a third season, which will be the same length as Messi and Busquets.