David Beckham’s Inter Miami CF didn’t exactly have a smooth transition during their first season in MLS. They put together a promising team with a good foundation but they couldn’t translate that into many wins during the first passage of the season.
Then, The Herons added both Gonzalo Higuaín and Blaise Matuidi planning ahead of this season, and you’d argue that they’d now have one of the most overpowered and promising teams in America’s top-flight tournament.
The only problem is that these signings reportedly broke the Designated Player rule, as Inter Miami already had Mexican playmaker Rodolfo Pizarro and Argentine youngster Matias Pellegrini.
Inter Miami CF Breaks Budget Rules Over Blaise Matuidi Signing: Possible Sanctions
According to MLS rules, every team is allowed to have a maximum of 3 Designated Players. Two of them can be high-priced players whose wages exceed the league’s salary cap. The other can also join the squad as long as the team makes a $150,000 payment to be split among the rest of the teams.
Beckham’s side chose to register Matuidi’s contract as a TAM deal (Targeted Allocation Money) instead of a Designated Player. However, the league’s investigation concluded that he was paid over the $1.6125 limit for a TAM player, thus becoming a de-facto Designated Player.
As of now, Major League Soccer has yet to reveal the final results of its investigation and the possible sanctions the second-year club could be facing, but it would most likely include the loss of draft picks.
Matias Pellegrini: The Odd Man Out Of Inter Miami CF
Sadly for everybody involved, former Estudiantes La Plata midfielder Matias Pellegrini was the biggest casualty from this situation. The club decided to buy out his contract and send him on loan to their USL squad.
Pellegrini isn’t likely to suit up for the third-tier team, though. He’s expected to resume training with the first squad while he and his agent work out on a deal to try and get him to another club in the summer.