While not a former Barcelona teammate, Lionel Messi still has his eyes out and his phone on him to try and recruit players to his Inter Miami team.
The latest could be former Manchester United center back Marcos Rojo, a longtime comrade of Messi’s with the Argentina national team.
According to Hernan Castillo of Continental 590 radio in Argentina, both Messi and Inter Miami manager Tata Martino have reached out to Rojo over the phone to try and convince him to join the MLS side.
Rojo is currently playing for Argentine giants Boca Juniors, but at age 33, he could look to make one more big move in his career.
Castillo reports that in addition to the MLS club, Brazilian club Palmeiras are also interested in Rojo’s services.
Rojo and Messi have played many times together – including here at the 2018 World Cup
The 33-year-old Rojo played with Messi at two World Cups – including in 2014, when he played all 120 minutes of the World Cup Final loss to Germany.
He’s scored three times in 61 caps for his country – with all three goals coming in major tournaments.
The first was a game-winner over Nigeria in the final match of the 2014 World Cup group stage that saw La Albiceleste win the group.
He scored the second time the following year in the semifinals of the Copa America – bagging the first of what would be six goals for his home nation that saw them advance to the final of that tournament.
His final goal came in the 2018 World Cup group stage, once again, a game winner against Nigeria that saw them just barely advance to the knockout stages.
He spent seven years in England with Manchester United, winning four trophies after being signed by Louis van Gaal in 2014 from Portuguese team Sporting Lisbon.
At United, he won the FA Cup, League Cup and Europa League.