Pedri open to Major League Soccer move after Barcelona stint

Posted Thursday, July 27, 2023 by ESPN

Barcelona midfielder Pedri told ESPN that he is open to playing in Major League Soccer following his spell at the LaLiga club.

Pedri's former Barca teammates Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba joined MLS side Inter Miami earlier this month.

The Spain international is under contract with the Catalan club until June 2026.

Asked about a potential move to MLS once his career at Barca is over, Pedri, 20, told ESPN: "Yes. It's a league that's fun to watch, and life here is great.

"There's a lot to do. The cities here are incredible, and it piques the interest coming over here. But there's a long way to go before deciding on that."

Record seven-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi had initially considered a return to Barcelona, the club he had left in 2021 due to its financial crisis, before deciding to join Inter Miami.

While Barca players are disappointed not to have Messi back, they believe the Argentina captain will take MLS to another level.

"Yes, it will be good for MLS," Barca left-back Alejandro Balde told ESPN. "At the end of the day it's Leo Messi, the best player in history, and wherever he goes, it [the league] is going to grow."

Pedri and Balde are on preseason tour with Barcelona in the United States, who face Arsenal on Thursday.

The Catalan club won LaLiga last season but again fell short in Europe's elite club competition after being eliminated from the Champions League in the group stages.

"I think every year there is pressure at Barca to win all the titles, but now more so," Pedri added. "We want to show that last year wasn't a coincidence, that we're going after it with everything we've got, and why not bring the other trophies home?

"Champions League is one of the principal things that we're going after with everything we've got. We have two years where it hasn't gone our way, but we want to change that dynamic to turn that around."

Barca have strengthened their squad with the arrivals of defenders Iñigo Martínez, Oriol Romeu and midfielder Ilkay Gündogan.

"I've always said, all the great players should join Barca, which to me is the best club in the world," Pedri said.

"The first few training sessions I've had with Gundo [Gündogan], you can already tell what kind of quality he possesses. I've seen games but seeing him up close has a bigger impact. The way he turns, how it's rare to see him lose the ball. I'm going to have a lot of fun being at his side."