Inter Miami may have bowed out of the Club World Cup following a heavy 4-0 loss to Paris Saint-Germain, but head coach Javier Mascherano insists the experience will prove invaluable for his side — and for Major League Soccer as a whole.
The MLS club, boosted by the presence of Lionel Messi, who has won the Ballon d’Or a record eight times, made it through the group stage after finishing second in Group A. But on Sunday, they were brought back down to earth by a ruthless PSG side — the very club where Messi once starred.
Despite the humbling defeat, Mascherano remains optimistic.
“There’s a big lesson to take from this,” said the former Argentina international. “We’ll go back, analyse everything, and try to take stock of what we’ve learned.”
Mascherano believes that the tournament served as a wake-up call about the current gap between MLS clubs and Europe’s elite, but also sees it as a growth opportunity.
“This will definitely help us when we return to compete in our domestic league,” he added. “But it all depends on how smart we are in applying what we’ve experienced here.”
The Miami boss also had praise for PSG and their head coach Luis Enrique, someone he knows well.
“They’re a fantastic team with world-class players and an exceptional coach. I really believe this is a PSG side that people will remember.”
