Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has said he is prepared to watch Major League Soccer matches simply to continue seeing Lionel Messi play following the Argentine star’s retirement from international football.

Messi, 39, announced his decision after leading Argentina to a second consecutive World Cup final in July.

The forward had guided Argentina to the 2022 World Cup title after a dramatic penalty-shootout victory over France in Doha. Their attempt to retain the trophy in 2026 ended with a 1-0 defeat to Spain in the final.

Mourinho is particularly familiar with Messi from their years on opposite sides of one of football’s fiercest rivalries.

During Mourinho’s previous spell in charge of Real Madrid between 2010 and 2013, his team repeatedly faced Messi’s Barcelona in high-profile El Clasico encounters.

Speaking ahead of Real Madrid’s LaLiga match against Real Betis, Mourinho said Messi’s ability was difficult to describe because so much had already been said about the Argentine throughout his career.

He said Messi had continued to demonstrate his extraordinary quality even in the closing stages of his international career.

Mourinho added that certain footballers leave a noticeable absence when their careers begin to wind down, and Messi belongs firmly in that category.

The Portuguese coach admitted that MLS is not normally a competition he particularly enjoys watching, but said he would now have a reason to follow some matches.

For Mourinho, watching Inter Miami would provide an opportunity to enjoy what remains of Messi’s playing career.

He described Messi as one of the defining players of the past two decades and someone football supporters will inevitably miss when he eventually stops playing altogether.

The connection between Mourinho and Messi stretches back even further than their famous Real Madrid-Barcelona rivalry.

Their first encounter came in November 2003, when a teenage Messi appeared for Barcelona’s first team in an unofficial friendly against Porto, then managed by Mourinho.

Porto won the match 2-0 and later went on to win the Champions League that season.

Messi subsequently developed into one of the most successful players in football history, while his encounters with Mourinho’s Real Madrid became an important chapter in the intense rivalry between Barcelona and Madrid.

Messi acknowledged that leaving Argentina had been a painful decision.

In announcing his retirement, he said he had always given everything for the national team, including during the difficult years before Argentina began winning major trophies.

The decision brought an end to an international career that included the 2022 World Cup and two Copa América titles.

His international retirement does not, however, mark the end of his playing career.

Messi remains contracted to Major League Soccer club Inter Miami through the end of the 2028 season.

That means supporters may still have several more seasons to watch him at club level.

Mourinho, despite his reservations about watching MLS, appears determined to be among them.