Lionel Messi likely to make Inter Miami debut from the bench tonight

Lionel Messi will likely make his Inter Miami debut from the bench tonight.

The 36-year-old was unveiled by the MLS club last weekend and he has trained this week as he builds up fitness.

Sergio Busquets, who joined Miami earlier this week, is also expected to feature in the Leagues Cup match against Cruz Azul, but Messi’s other former Barcelona team-mate, Jordi Alba, who completed his own move on Thursday, will not be involved after becoming a father this week.

Messi’s debut has been highly anticipated since he announced in early June that he had decided to move to MLS following his Paris Saint-Germain exit, despite interest from Barcelona and Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal.

The price of tickets to see Messi’s first match for Inter Miami have shot up since the announcement of his transfer. Prices of re-sale tickets for Wednesday’s match against Cruz Azul range from $200 to $5,000.

GO DEEPER

Lionel Messi’s millions: The man, the brand and the money

Messi in Miami — read more on The Athletic…

Messi completed his move to Inter Miami earlier this month and signed a contract for two-and-a-half seasons, with an option to extend for a further year in the 2026 season.

He has joined up with former boss Tata Martino at the club following his appointment as head coach in June.

Messi took part in his first training session in Fort Lauderdale on Tuesday, alongside Busquets.

GO DEEPER

How Beckham’s transformative MLS contract paved the way for Messi

The Making of Messi: A special audio series by The Athletic

To mark Messi’s move to Miami, we’ve created a special three-part audio series titled ‘The Making of Messi’ telling the journey of how all roads ended up pointing to Florida.

As well as his on-field ups and downs, we chart his complex relationship with his country Argentina and explain the nuances of the unique deal that brought him to Miami — from equity to shirt sales to Saudi Arabia.

It features James Horncastle at his lyrical best, Michael Cox with his unrivalled tactical insight and Felipe Cardenas and Paul Tenorio’s local expertise as we get to the heart of what makes Messi tick on and off the pitch.

You can listen to ‘The Making of Messi’ in its entirety for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and wherever you get your podcasts. Just search for that title or The Athletic’s documentary feed ‘Go Deeper’.

GO DEEPER

Think you know Messi? Test yourself with a 20-question quiz

How can I watch Inter Miami matches on TV/streaming?

All Inter Miami matches will be available to stream worldwide (with some exceptions) through Apple TV’s MLS Season Pass subscription service.  In the U.S., some matches will also be broadcast on Fox/FS1/Fox Deportes and Leagues Cup matches will be available on Univision/Unimas/TUDN.

For Inter Miami’s first two Leagues Cup matches, Season Pass will feature “an enhanced production” that includes “18 cameras, Steadicam, four super slow-motion cameras, Skycam, a drone, sideline reporters in…