2023 is an extremely special year for football fans because it is the first year that marks the absence of two stars Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in the UEFA Champions League arena. Ronaldo went to play in the Saudi Pro League, while Messi chose Inter Miami, an MLS team, as a destination for the final years of his career. 

Although no longer in their peak years, this duo’s achievements are still very respectable. Ronaldo is still the Arab top scorer, and with Messi, he won the World Cup, the only title the Argentine star lacks in his collection.

Messi won the 8th Golden Ball of his career in 2023

With 2023 coming to an end, let’s look back at El Pulga’s performances for both club and national team.

45 appearances: Messi had 22 matches in 2023 under the PSG shirt, 14 matches with Inter Miami and 9 matches with the Argentina team.

28 goals: The Argentinian scored 9 goals for PSG, 11 goals for Inter Miami and 8 goals for Argentina.

12 assists: 6 times for PSG, 5 times for Inter Miami and 1 assist for Argentina.

2 titles: Messi also helped PSG win Ligue 1 and helped Inter Miami win the Leagues Cup, the first title in this team’s history.

Lionel Messi will return to play next January, when Inter Miami has tours to prepare for the new season. On January 19, president David Beckham’s team will go to El Salvador for a friendly match with the country’s national team. After that, coach Tata Martino’s team will move to Saudi Arabia to have two friendly matches with Al Hilah on January 29 and with Al Nassr, Cristiano Ronaldo’s team on February 1, 2024.

Inter Miami’s MLS 2024 schedule

Just 3 days later, Inter Miami will fly to Hong Kong again to compete against this country’s star team. After that, the pink shirt team will return to Miami to face Newell’s Old Boys, Messi’s childhood team.