Beckham might have Neville question to answer if Messi is to be tempted | CPT PPP Coverage

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Upon being appointed as manager of fledgling Major League Soccer side Inter Miami in January 2021, Phil Neville set out a vision: “This fantastic soccer-loving market deserves consistent performances and a winning mentality, and I look forward to getting to work.”

The only consistency in recent weeks has been defeat. Six on the spin have sent Miami spiralling towards the bottom of the Eastern Conference, level on points with basement boys Montreal. For a franchise that is backed by David Beckham and is courting Lionel Messi, it’s not where the club wants or expects to be.

The buck stops with Neville, as the former Manchester United man acknowledged after the most recent defeat. Miami squandered several chances in their 1-0 loss at Houston Dynamo and the 46-year-old fronted up afterwards.

ALSO READ: Neville facing crucial Inter Miami period

“You’re right, we need to start winning,” he said. “It’s nowhere near good enough for what we want for this football club. I take full responsibility for that and the consequences that come my way.”

So far, consequences have not been forthcoming. Neville was only handed a new contract in November after overseeing an improved 2022 campaign. Whether his old pal Beckham and Co look to change the manager remains to be seen but there is work to do on the pitch for the Herons.

They face second tier neighbours Miami FC, coached by Anthony Pulis – son of Tony – in the US Open Cup on Thursday (12:30am UK time). Defeat would represent another low point in a season that has yet to get going.

Neville came into it with high hopes. Last year they finished sixth, securing a spot in the end of season play-offs, where they were eliminated by New York in round one. That was a significant improvement on the 11th place finish in Neville’s debut campaign.

Then the goals of star player Gonzalo Higuain papered over the cracks. Last term there were signs that a more permanent solution was in the offing.

“It was the way we played, the style of football we played, the players that were out on that field, the feeling in the club and the culture that we feel as if we’re building,” said Neville when discussing the positives of 2022.

The fledgling state of Miami, who were only formed three years ago, means there is a lot of work to do and foundations to lay. Neville wants to create a culture and has talked of building a team of Florida natives to replicate the famous Manchester United Class of ’92.

But that’s a long-term aim and football can often be a short term game. Miami’s glitz and glamour makes them an obvious link when it comes to superstars of Europe who could be considering a move across the Atlantic. Sergio Busquets and his former Barcelona team-mate Messi have been consistently linked with a Stateside switch. Both are out of contract in the summer and Neville has fanned the flames of speculation.

“I’m not going to deny [it and say] there isn’t truth in the speculation that we’re interested in Lionel Messi and Sergio Busquets,” he told The Times.

Players of that calibre would strengthen any team but perhaps the bigger question is whether Neville will be there to reap the benefits. If he cannot turn around Miami’s fortunes quickly, his achievements last year will seem a flash in the pan rather than the start of something more. For the ex-United man, it feels like make or break time.

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