Casemiro is on the verge of joining Inter Miami CF as per multiple reports, including by ESPN and The Athletic. According to those reports, Casemiro has decided to join Inter Miami CF in Major League Soccer when the transfer window opens on July 13. But there are still some obstacles to overcome before the Brazilian can join Lionel Messi’s club. First, they need to acquire the player’s discovery rights, and then they also need to fit the Brazilian under the cap.
The LA Galaxy tried to sign the 34-year-old defensive midfielder in March, which means they now own his discovery rights. For Inter Miami to complete a deal, they must acquire those rights before they can negotiate a contract with Casemiro. Although a complication, it is a problem that can be overcome.
The Vancouver Whitecaps paid $400,000 in General Allocation Money (GAM) to FC Cincinnati before they could sign Thomas Müller last summer. The Galaxy themselves paid $350,000 in GAM to Charlotte the previous summer to acquire Marco Reus. Both were record deals at the time.
Then there is Miami’s issue of not having an open Designated Player spot. Currently, Messi, Rodrigo de Paul and Germán Berterame occupy those three spots. Miami have been able to overcome those issues in the past. De Paul, for example, was signed to a max-Targeted Allocation Money deal last summer when he joined on loan from Atlético Madrid.
That deal earned him a base salary of $1.5m and guaranteed compensation of $3.62m. Once the deal was made permanent for this season, De Paul’s guaranteed compensation rose to $9.69m this season. Miami aren’t the only club to use this sort of mechanism. The Whitecaps also signed Müller to an initial TAM deal that was converted to a DP contract for this year.
The LA Galaxy and Saudi Arabia’s Al Ittihad also reportedly expressed interest in trying to lure Casemiro to their respective clubs.
Since Inter Miami does not have a Designated Player spot available on its roster, Casemiro’s contract will be less than $2 million for this season, barring one of the club’s three DPs doesn’t leave over the summer.
