MLS preseason storylines: Gregg Berhalter’s return, Lionel Messi and Inter Miami aim to bounce back and more

It’s almost time for another MLS season to kick off as teams look to catch the Los Angeles Galaxy who won the MLS Cup last season. With San Diego FC joining the league as a 30th team ahead of the league’s 30th season, things will look a little different but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Cucho Hernandez is now back in La Liga, Miguel Almiron has returned to Atlanta United, and Argentina legend Javier Mascherano is now the head coach of Inter Miami.

With MLS sides wrapping up preseason and kicking off Concacaf Champions Cup play this week, it’s a good time to take a look at what to know ahead of the season kicking off on Feb. 22. 

Where are the prolific 10s going? 

At the end of last season, MVP finalist Evander posted a thread on X about why he doesn’t want to play for the Portland Timbers anymore due to broken promises. While that was deleted, he hasn’t moved yet, and with the new MLS roster mechanisms about being able to pay cash for players within the league, it’s now realistic for a designated player to move domestically where previously they probably would’ve gone abroad. There are a few reasons why Evander, MVP finalist with 15 goals and 19 assists, hasn’t moved and that’s because of a domino effect around the league. 

Atlanta United were able to fill their void at the 10 by bringing back Miguel Almiron from Newcastle United, but another team that could be in the mix is FC Cincinnati. They’ve now seen Lucho Acosta move to FC Dallas in a landmark move for the league. It is a $5 million move with the potential of another one million in add-ons funded by the new MLS cash-for-players rule. In previous seasons, someone like Acosta wouldn’t move without going abroad and coming back to MLS like he did when leaving D.C. United, but now, teams can be fairly compensated for their stars, keeping top talent in the league. With Evander being younger than Acosta, there’s no reason why a fee for him wouldn’t be similar if not higher, but it’s also clear that we’ve entered a new era within the league with former MVPs swapping teams.

Change in Los Angeles

After winning MLS Cup last season, the LA Galaxy will now look a little different. Not only is Riqui Puig still injured which will put more pressure on Marco Reus, but star striker Dejan Joveljic and his 21 regular season goals are now leading the line for Sporting Kansas City. The Galaxy were able to add a new striker in Christian Rameriez joining from the Columbus Crew, but this is now Joseph Paintsil and Gabriel Pec’s attack. The duo have proven that they can be the leaders in this attack but expectations will be higher than ever after the Galaxy returned to the top of MLS last season. The midfield remake of adding Lucas Sanabria, Elijah Wynder and Sean Davis should be enough to keep the Galaxy at the top of the west, but they’ll have plenty of competition from their crosstown rivals. 

Mateusz Boguz is gone from the LAFC after they received an offer that they couldn’t refuse from Cruz Azul, but he isn’t the only departure with Illie Sanchez, Stipe Buik, Omar Campos, and a few other players leaving. This is nothing new for the Black and Gold, who have become used to replacing multiple key players year after year, and the addition of Jeremy Ebobisse could add a lot to the attack. Olivier Giroud has yet to hit the ground running in MLS, so knowing that there is a reliable striker behind him will be important with more pressure than ever on their leader Denis Bouanga. If he can keep this team at the top, he’ll be a key rival to Lionel Messi as an MVP candidate, but when scanning the league for the biggest rivals to Inter Miami, they both reside in Los Angeles.

Can Inter Miami bounce back?

There’s no denying that last season was a disappointment for Inter Miami. Despite winning the Supporters’ Shield and setting a new single-season record with 74 points during the regular season, the Herons struggled in the playoffs, getting knocked out in the first round to Atlanta United. But it wasn’t the absence of league MVP Messi that slowed the Herons down during parts of the season, it was actually missing Sergio Busquets that left the defense without an answer for oncoming attacks. Under the new leadership of Javier Mascherano, this is something that the Herons will need to figure out how to handle if injuries arise.

Federico Redondo will have more time under his belt alongside new signing Telasco Segovia. but it’s hard to judge Miami. They’ll roll over plenty of teams in the league, but regular season almost doesn’t matter when this is a team that will be judged by silverware. One of only two teams taking part in three non-league competitions with the Club World Cup, League Cup and Concacaf Champions Cup, this is a roster that will be stretched to its limits. Jordi Alba, Luis Suarez, Messi and Busquets are all a year older and Mascherano has quite a job on his hands managing that while balancing the various competitions.

Chicago on the rise

Almost the second that Gregg Berhalter was hired as the general manager and head coach of the Chicago Fire, he had to get to the bottom of figuring out his roster with decisions on who the Fire would retain. With the season right around the corner, he still hasn’t stopped with the Fire being one of the most active teams in the open market during the offseason. In Hugo Cuypers, the Fire already have a bonified star to build around, but during the offseason, Berhalter has showcased one of his key attributes that helped the United States men’s national team — recruitment. 

Adding Jack Elliott, Jonathan Bamba, Philip Zinckernagel and Sam Rogers, this team doesn’t look anything like the Fire that missed the playoffs last season. Berhalter has a tough job ahead of him to get these players to get on the same page, but if he can do that, it’s clear to see who the most improved MLS side will be, and he’d be clear in the running for coach of the year as well. We’ve seen the Fire spend in the past without having results to show for it, but this offseason feels different.