Lionel Messi's 'Shocking' Dressing Room Gesture Shows His True Character

Lionel Messi signed his contract with Inter Miami and finalised his deal to join Major League Soccer in July 2023.

Miami had announced back then that Messi's deal would be for 2 1/2 seasons, and the club would pay him between $50 million and $60 million annually, putting the total contract value between $125 million and $150 million in cash alone.

It was, in many ways, an unusual arrangement, as Messi—the biggest star in the game—signed with a team that was last place in the MLS's Eastern Conference standings two years ago. The club was also just in its fourth season.

Messi, a four-time Champions League winner, had a decorated cabinet of trophies that included 10 La Liga titles, two Ligue 1 championships, seven Copa del Reys, and three Club World Cups, plus a Copa America, the FIFA World Cup, and the Olympic gold medal for Argentina.

So, joining a club like Miami, which had little success on the pitch, made it seem like two worlds were coming together, but Messi's unassuming character and manners off the pitch most astonished many people, including Former Inter Miami ace Josef Martinez.

"Everything changed in a day. I swear. It was shocking," Martinez said on the La Vinotinto podcast. "You see him sitting there, and he's the most normal person I've ever seen in my life, and he's famous.

"Not even God is as well-known as he is. Seeing him sitting there was something impressive: folding his shirt, matching his uniform with his watch, and shoes with his shirt. He would sit down, and you'd say: 'Wow!' He'd greet you normally."

"When I joined Inter, it was like Combat Football Club. Honestly, when I joined Inter, neither Messi, Busquets, nor Jordi had arrived. We had lost about 15 matches in a row.

"When we heard that he was coming, everyone was saying: 'No way he's coming.' It was madness. When it became official, we didn't even know he had arrived. We never saw him. We only saw him two days before the Cruz Azul match. We had never seen him enter. I never saw him. And then we went from being the worst team in MLS to being like the Real Madrid of the league."

"That, despite being a guy who has won everything, he always arrived first for training. He was great with us, he was great with me," Martinez explained. "And you felt you had to be at his same level.

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