Tata Martino reveals what MLS need to do if Inter Miami are to sign Neymar
Neymar has been linked with a move to Inter Miami, with the Brazil superstar the latest name to potentially reunite with Lionel Messi in Florida.
The former PSG winger’s contract with Al-Hilal is due to expire next summer, with Inter Miami already making a reported offer to sign Neymar with the Herons keen to bring the forward to Chase Stadium for 2025.
With Messi, Luis Suarez and Sergio Busquets already on Inter Miami’s books, the Supporters’ Shield champions would need to pull off quite the logistical challenge if they’re to bring Neymar to Florida within MLS’s strict salary rules.
And Tata Martino has now shared whether a transfer is even possible.
Neymar to Inter Miami impossible unless MLS changes salary rules
Speaking to the press, the Inter Miami manager revealed that Neymar joining the Herons is simply not possible unless MLS decide to change their salary rules and the flexibility teams can have when spending on players.
Inter Miami already have the largest payroll in the league with Messi the highest-paid player in the division by some distance, and the Florida franchise adding Neymar to their salary list is a pipe-dream, for now.
Martino said when asked if Neymar to Inter Miami is possible: “With [Messi] and the boys already here, anything can happen. What I can’t imagine is if the league doesn’t make the salary issue more flexible, how it would be carried out.
“After writing it or saying it in the media it’s all good, nothing happens, it doesn’t have any consequences, but what would the implementation be like? And the reality is that if there is something that the MLS has, it is that the rules are strict and can’t be broken, unless MLS decides to change.”
MLS might buckle under Inter Miami pressure to increase player spending
Inter Miami are no strangers to breaking spending rules in MLS, yet with Messi now in Florida and the Herons’ ambition greatly outpacing what they’re actually capable of doing, pressure is starting to build for salary changes to be implemented.
Neymar is clearly a target for Inter Miami with the Brazilian a perfect signing for the Florida giants in their long-term goal to become the best side in MLS and one of the biggest teams in all of soccer.
Yet with MLS’s salary rules restricting Inter Miami’s spending power, there could be real change in the coming months that will allow the likes of Neymar to move to Chase Stadium next year, a transfer that could be huge.
