Toronto FC Recruits Former MLS MVP to Channel Messi Magic Before Inter Miami Showdown
What's the best way to get ready for Lionel Messi? This challenge has troubled clubs for more than two decades, but Toronto FC has attempted a fresh approach—enlisting a Major League Soccer icon.
Before Toronto FC's matchup against Inter Miami this Saturday, the Canadian side invited former star and MLS MVP Sebastian Giovinco to practice sessions, hoping the MLS Cup winner and club icon could replicate Messi during training.
Giovinco netted 83 times for Toronto FC and guided the squad to two MLS Cup championship games, plus a Concacaf Champions League final. Though he hasn't competed professionally since 2022, he continues with the organization as an ambassador and joined practice this week aiming to mirror Messi's style.
"I can't imagine a better candidate to show us what facing Messi might feel like," Toronto manager Robin Fraser shared with The Canadian Press regarding the 38-year-old previously dubbed 'The Atomic Ant.' "I'd argue Seba was this league's version of Messi before Messi actually arrived in this league.
"He's not in game shape right now, but he still displays flashes of brilliance…Whenever I watch him execute something, like some of the deliveries he made today, it simply brings a smile to my face because it takes me back to when we were here and Seba was performing at his highest level and was, in many respects, unstoppable," Fraser added.
Throughout Giovinco's tenure, he helped establish a new era of MLS Designated Players, moving to Toronto FC from Juventus at age 27 in 2015, breaking the pattern of players only considering the American premier league at their career's end.
Giovinco helped guide Toronto alongside former U.S. men's national team legends Michael Bradley and Jozy Altidore, reaching their pinnacle in 2017 when the team achieved a remarkable treble, capturing MLS Cup, the Supporters' Shield and the Canadian Championship.
With the compact forward's rapid dribbling and masterful set pieces, he steered Toronto FC through its most triumphant period in franchise history, a standard the club aims to reclaim after missing postseason play for the past four campaigns and falling short early in 2025.
However, the path forward begins with ending 2025 positively, and Fraser hopes his team can accomplish that in their final home fixture by pulling off an upset win following six consecutive ties.
"We notice ourselves generating more opportunities each match, and those opportunities are improving," he stated. "I truly believe it's a development journey, and we're witnessing the squad genuinely evolve week by week."