"I don't even try to watch him play." That's Egypt's sporting director Ibrahim Hassan, talking about Lionel Messi — the man who just won a World Cup, multiple Ballon d'Ors, and is currently the face of Major League Soccer. MLS Commissioner Don Garber had something to say about that.
The whole thing started when Mohamed Salah confirmed he's leaving Liverpool at the end of the season. Several clubs moved quickly, including MLS sides. Hassan publicly warned Salah away from America, claiming he'd disappear from relevance — citing Messi as evidence. "Nobody will remember Salah anymore, just like I don't remember Messi," he said.
Garber, speaking to The Guardian, didn't let that go quietly.
"Lionel Messi is the most popular player in the world. He was and still is," Garber said. "I'd gladly give the president of the Egyptian Football Association an Apple subscription so he can watch as many of Messi's games as he wants."
A familiar argument, and why Garber isn't entirely wrong
Hassan's take isn't new — it's the same critique MLS has fielded for three decades. The league is where careers go to wind down, visibility fades, and national team coaches take note. Garber acknowledged as much: "I remember that, not long ago, the coaches of the Mexican national team would say, 'If you're in MLS, you won't play for our national team.' That doesn't happen today."
He's right that the landscape has shifted. The league now features Antoine Griezmann, Thomas Müller, James Rodríguez, Son Heung-min, and yes, Messi — players who arrived with legitimate résumés, not just big names on the back end of forgettable careers. Viewership, investment, and expansion have all accelerated. Whether that's enough to keep Salah competitively relevant at 33 is a different question entirely.
For anyone tracking Salah's next destination in the transfer market, the absence of any concrete announcement keeps every price fluid. A move to MLS almost certainly shortens his international shelf life regardless of what Garber says. A return to a top European club or a Saudi switch are the only options that keep him in weekly high-stakes football — and at 33 coming off a strong Liverpool season, there will be takers.
Salah still hasn't said a word about where he's going
Lost in the noise between Garber and Hassan is the fact that Salah himself has revealed nothing. Two Premier League titles, a Champions League, and a decade of elite-level output at Anfield — and his next chapter is completely open. The back-and-forth between an MLS commissioner and an Egyptian football official says more about MLS's PR instincts than it does about where Salah will actually end up.
"I've been dealing with skepticism for 27 years. It's never stopped me, and it never will," Garber added. Fair enough. But Salah is the one making the call — and he hasn't made it yet.
