Major League Soccer (MLS) club Inter Miami have been very busy in the transfer market, especially after the marquee signing of Argentinian great Lionel Messi as they look to revive their sagging fortunes.
It looks as though there is going to a Barcelona reunion in Florida if one goes by the rumour mills.
After signing Messi, followed by Sergio Busquets, the grapevine is that Miami are eyeing a third ex-Barca player in Luiz Suarez.
The Uruguayan striker is currently plying his trade with Gremio in the Brazilian League and it is presumed that the 36-year-old is ready to forego his salary in Brazil where his contract ends in 2024, for a possible reunion with Messi with whom he spent six golden years at Barca.
Budget constraints
As per reports, Miami co-owner Jorge Mas is very keen on having Suarez on board in Florida, but the only thing that could prove to be a dampener is MLS roster restrictions which allow only three designated players withing a specified salary cap. With Messi, Busquets and Leonardo Campana already coming under the designated players budget, Miami could tweak the targeted allocation money (TAM), to accommodate Suarez, who despite being at the wrong end of the 30s, is still a worthy investment.
As per MLS roaster restrictions, each team is allowed to spend only $5,210,000 per team, which excludes designated players. In addition to that, they have an additional TAM budget of $2,720,000.
Suarez, who had made a record move to Barcelona in 2014 from Liverpool was part of the famed MNS — Messi, Suarez, Neymar — troika in Camp Nou who were on a goalscoring spree as the Catalan giants won literally everything on offer when the trio were in Spain.
That includes four La Liga titles, as many Spanish Cups, the Super Cup, and the FIFA Club World Cup plus the prestigious UEFA Champions League triumph in 2015.
Better schedule
Though concerns remain about his dodgy knee, Inter Miami will suit Suarez better as the schedule in MLS is not cramped like other major European or South American leagues.
Inter Miami, who have ex-England captain and Manchester United legend David Beckham as one of their co-owners, have been struggling to stay afloat in MLS where they have not won a match for almost two months.
Re-union of the Barca gang would just be what they need at this juncture!
