From signing another player to naming a sponsor, Inter Miami CF is doing everything in its power to be ready for its MLS debut in 2020.
THIRD SIGNING
The club announced on Tuesday it had signed 19-year-old Christian Makoun, a versatile player who joins Inter Miami via transfer from Zamora FC of Venezuela’s First Division.
Makoun, who can play center-back and defensive midfield, had been on loan with Juventus before returning to Venezuela. In his 21 appearances for Juventus, Makoun scored three goals for the U23 team.
“We are happy to add a young player with solid experience both in Europe and South America to Inter Miami’s roster,” Inter Miami sporting director Paul McDonough said in a statement. “Christian is a grounded player of good character and maturity. He has shown us that he strives to represent himself and his home country at the highest level, and this is the mindset we want to build at Inter Miami.”
Makoun is now the third player Inter Miami has signed in the club’s history, joining left-winger Matias Pellegrini and forward Julian Carranza.
Pellegrini, the first signee, will join via transfer from Estudiantes de La Plata while Carranza will join via transfer from Club Atlatico Banfield.
FIRST SPONSOR
In addition to signing Makoun, Inter Miami also announced its first sponsor: Heineken.
As the first founding partner and official beer of Inter Miami, the multi-year deal grants the Dutch beer maker “signage, intellectual property rights, and retail activations.”
“After much anticipation and excitement around the return of MLS to South Florida, we are thrilled to play a role as Inter Miami CF’s first official partner, and look forward to celebrating many future firsts together,” said Jonnie Cahill, Heineken’s chief marketing officer.
The partnership shouldn’t come as a surprise considering Heineken has been the official beer of Major League Soccer for five years now.
“Since 2014, Heineken has been an invaluable supporter of Major League Soccer and our clubs, so it is with great pride that we congratulate Heineken and Inter Miami CF on the announcement of their partnership,” said Gary Stevenson, president of MLS Business Ventures.
TOP COACHING CANDIDATE SURFACES
Signings and sponsors are great, but someone has to lead the club come gametime. For Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham, that person should be former Milan teammate Gennaro Gattuso.
The 41-year-old is free of coaching obligations after resigning from AC Milan following the club’s fifth place finish in Serie A.
Gattuso took over as the team’s head coach in 2017, winning 40 games, losing 20 and drawing another 22 over the two-year span. He still had two years left on his deal, but made the “painful but thoughtful choice” to step down.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Beckham and Gattuso have been in serious talks about the former Italian midfielder becoming his squad’s first-ever head coach.
Though Gattuso appears to be the frontrunner, The Sun is reporting Inter Miami is also linked to current Napoli manager Carlo Ancelotti.
“We’ve interviewed probably half a dozen serious candidates, we’re down to two or three,” said Inter Miami co-owner Jorge Mas. “We’ve been looking at coaches that coached at the highest levels – they’ve been very good players in their own right. We’re going to play an attacking style of football led by David Beckham’s vision and shared by ownership. We want a coach to fit in that can establish not only a winning culture, but building an institution to succeed. We’re looking beyond year one, year two, year three.”
Mas added that fans should be on the lookout for “high-profile” signings soon as the team tries to build around its current young nucleus.
William is the Managing Editor at FloridaInsider.com. His years of experience in journalism, broadcasting and multimedia include roles as a Writer and Web Producer. He graduated from Florida International University with a Bachelor of Science and Communication.