Miami boss: MLS rules prevent Neymar signing

Inter Miami head coach Gerardo Martino has addressed the rumors linking Neymar to the club and insisted a deal would currently be impossible to negotiate given MLS roster and salary restrictions.

Neymar, who has a contract with Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal through the summer of 2025, has been linked with Miami ever since the club signed his former Barcelona teammates Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets last year.

“With [Messi] and the boys already here, anything that can happen. What I can’t imagine is if the league doesn’t make the salary issue more flexible, how it would be carried out,” Martino, who previously coached Neymar at Barcelona, told reporters Friday.

“After writing it or saying it in the media it’s all good, nothing happens, it doesn’t have any consequences, but what would the implementation be like? And the reality is that if there is something that the MLS has, it is that the rules are strict and can’t be broken, unless the MLS decides to change.”

Speculation heightened earlier this week after a report that Neymar had purchased a waterfront property in Miami, but Martino said it was ridiculous to link a player to a team because of real estate.

“Everyone that buys a home here is going to come to play? Ha! I arrived in Barcelona at the same time as [Neymar]. It was a good year and for me being able to coach such high-ranking players will always be a very special memory,” he said.

“The truth is that one cannot talk so easily and freely about whether a player could come or not. It seems to me that when we talk about this, another type of support is needed. We cannot talk or mention a player because he bought a house here or has a girlfriend from Fort Lauderdale.

“It’s nonsense, you have to speak with forceful things,” he said. “First you have to analyze what the league offers and if this is really possible. Starting from that base, today this is impossible, so there is no more continuity in this conversation.”

Martino instead shifted the focus to the team’s upcoming playoff match against Atlanta United on Saturday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Miami needs to win to advance to the conference semifinals. A loss for Miami would send this Round 1 best-of-three series to a third and deciding match Nov. 9 at Chase Stadium.

Inter Miami might be without Busquets for Saturday’s match, after Martino confirmed he remains ill and is being assessed on a day-to-day basis. Though the midfielder played an integral part in the 2-1 victory over Atlanta on Friday, he has not trained leading up to the second match.

“No, he hasn’t trained yet. He is still sick, and on a day-to-day basis. We will see today if he is available for the match tomorrow,” Martino said.

Beyond Busquets, David Ruiz and recently injured Ian Fray, the rest of the team is healthy for Saturday’s game.