Pitch Points: will Inter Miami be better next year, and can Nancy succeed at Celtic? | Football

Will Inter Miami be even better in 2026?

Lionel Messi is MLS Cup winner. That might be low on the GOAT’s list of career achievements, but it was clear in the Argentine’s celebrations after the 3-1 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps in Saturday’s championship match just how much it meant. Even for Messi, it was more than just a trophy. It was a “mission accomplished” moment.

For Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, it was a “game over” moment. Both legends now retire as MLS Cup winners and part of Inter Miami’s success story. Yet the South Floridians carried Alba and Busquets in the latter stages of their careers. Alba was a defensive liability and while Busquets lost a yard of pace a long time ago, the midfielder had his turn at the Exxon Valdez in 2025.

This is where Inter Miami could improve further this offseason. Amid celebrations at Chase Stadium on Saturday, Jorge Mas revealed the club had replacements for Alba and Busquets lined up with former Tottenham Hotspur left-back Sergio Reguilón reportedly on the MLS Cup winners’ radar.

How Inter Miami cruised through the playoffs to MLS Cup glory should shape the club’s transfer strategy for 2026 and beyond. With younger, fitter players around Messi, Javier Mascherano was able to make his team more aggressive against the ball and more energetic with it. Find more of these players and deepen this approach and there could be even more reason to fear Inter Miami next year.

Did Celtic set Nancy up for failure?

Leaving his post as Celtic manager for the first time on Sunday, Wilfried Nancy has perhaps never experienced such an enthusiastic welcome as he has received from his new fans. After a hiring process that took longer than expected when Nancy was first identified as the Scottish champions’ first choice to replace Brendan Rodgers, the reception has been deafening. However, against Hearts in a top-of-the-table encounter, those cheers quickly turned to boos during a 2-1 defeat in which Celtic’s only goal came in added time.

These boos weren’t necessarily aimed at Nancy. He only had two training sessions with his new players before Sunday’s match. But there were boos and general discontent, bordering on outright revolt, against the Celtic board, who have been blamed for the team’s struggles so far this season.

These difficulties date back to the summer transfer window, during which Celtic allowed several first-team players to leave without suitable replacements being signed in their place. (Supporters say the neglect goes back further than that.)

In the end, almost €15 million/$17.5 million was spent on the wingers (Sebastian Tounekti, Michel-Ange Baliskwisha and Benjamin Nygren) in a late attempt to salvage something from the summer. Nancy, however, does not use wingmen. His preferred 3-4-2-1 shape is already making headlines, as is his mini tactics board which was used on several occasions to communicate with Celtic’s confused players during Sunday’s game.

Nancy inherited a team that was far from brilliant. Worse still, it could be a team ill-suited to his ideas and approach. Sunday was a poor start and it won’t get any easier against Roma in the Europa League on Thursday and St Mirren in the League Cup final on Sunday. He’s about to find out how this isn’t a normal job.

Is Salah done as a Liverpool player?

Mohamed Salah had something to say after Liverpool’s latest disappointing result on Saturday and he didn’t hold back. After spending all 90 minutes of the 3-3 draw against Leeds United on the bench, Salah revealed his relationship with Arne Slot was broken and expressed his belief Liverpool had thrown him under the bus. “I think it’s very clear that someone wanted me to take all the blame,” he said in a seven-minute speech.

Perhaps it was something more deliberate than a rant. The last time Salah addressed the media in such a direct manner after a match was to twist Liverpool’s arm during contract negotiations. Salah, perhaps guided by his agent, knew the influence he had at the time and used it to land a further two-year extension.

This time, however, Salah may have overplayed his hand. He is a shadow of the player who broke all manner of Premier League goalscoring records last season. Lethargic and disinterested, Salah has been abandoned by Slot as Liverpool are better off without him at the moment. If Salah’s comments were intended to force a choice between him and the manager, there isn’t much recent evidence to suggest Liverpool should choose the former.

Liverpool’s transition to a post-Salah era began with the off-season additions of Hugo Ekitike, Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz. Their integration so far has been far from smooth, but the real consequence of Salah’s comments may come in how they accelerate a process for Liverpool that began this summer.