Lionel Messi’s first Inter Miami season a failure? Missing MLS playoffs shouldn’t define Argentine’s arrival in America
The club fell short when it comes to the postseason, but there were too many big wins elsewhere to call this season a failure
Inter Miami’s 2023 season is effectively over. There are still two games to be played, both against Charlotte FC, but in Miami’s case at least, those don’t matter. Their fate is sealed at this point. Even with those two games, their race has been run.
Before each and every season, MLS clubs embark with one primary goal in mind: make the playoffs. In reality, it isn’t the hardest of goals. More than half of the league reaches the postseason, some through talent, some through sheer force of will and others through… well, lots and lots of luck combined with too much incompetence from those below them.
There are secondary goals, too: trophies, transfers, off-field initiatives. Still, when every team kicks off preseason in the early months of the year, the first mission that everyone starts pushing towards is the playoffs.
And, in that part, Inter Miami failed. After squeaking into the postseason in 2022, they fell short this time around. With two games left, they’re already eliminated. There will be no more high-stakes games in South Florida this year.
But, as always, this discussion deserves just a little bit more nuance than that. Inter Miami may have failed in their postseason goal, but this campaign can’t be labelled as anything other than a big success.
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