Major League Soccer’s two most valuable clubs collide when Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami visits Son Heung-Min’s Los Angeles FC on Saturday night in the league opener for both.
After preseason injuries for both clubs, it appears both squads could be close to full strength for the game, which has been moved to the much larger Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Messi, the reigning MLS Golden Boot winner and two-time reigning MVP, has returned to training for Miami after a mild hamstring injury led to the postponement of the team’s last friendly in Puerto Rico.
“It was of course a shame that we couldn’t go,” said manager Javier Mascherano.
“Not only because it would have given us the opportunity to visit a country that we have not been able to visit in recent years, but also because it would have been valuable preparation to face an opponent like Independiente del Valle,” he added.
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As the Herons begin their MLS Cup title defense, they also learned this week that new striker, Germany’s Berterame, will be available after receiving his work visa.
Without Berterame, the Herons might have put 39-year-old Luis Suarez back in the starting lineup after coming off the bench during last year’s play-offs. Or they could have played a 4-3-3 against Messi at the top, as they did in the post-season games.
Meanwhile, Son did not play in preseason friendlies for the Black and Gold while dealing with a minor, unspecified lower-body injury. But the Korean star put any major concerns to rest with a masterful performance in LAFC’s CONCACAF Champions Cup opener on Tuesday night.
The 33-year-old started, scored one goal and assisted three more during a 61-minute shift in a 6-1 battle against Real Espana of Honduras in Leg 1 of LAFC’s first round match.
Denis Bouanga was the biggest beneficiary, scoring a hat-trick to give LAFC a seemingly insurmountable lead heading into next week’s second leg. That will likely give first-year manager Marc Dos Santos room to push his regulars for more minutes against Miami.
Published on February 21, 2026
