Ancelotti addresses Inter Miami coach rumor; team signs captain of Venezuelan U20 team
Inter Miami now has three players signed after announcing Tuesday that Venezuelan 19-year-old Christian Makoun will join the team pending receipt of his International Transfer Certificate and visa.
The defensive midfielder, who can also play center back, is captain of the Venezuelan U20 team. He spent last season on loan in Italy with the Juventus U19 team, but Juventus decided not to exercise its option to sign him to a contract. Real Madrid and Arsenal had shown interest in Makoun last year, and Atletico Madrid was in talks with him this summer.
It is still being decided where he will play through the end of the year, as he wouldn’t join Inter Miami until training camp in January 2020.
“We are happy to add a young player with solid experience both in Europe and South America to Inter Miami’s roster,” said Inter Miami sporting director Paul McDonough. “Christian is a grounded player of good character and maturity. He has shown us that that he strives to represent himself and his home country at the highest level, and this is the mind-set we want to build at Inter Miami.”
Makoun said he excited to play in a city that has so many Venezuelans.
“I love my country and am happy I can represent Venezuela here, and be close to so many Venezuelans,” Makoun said. “I can’t wait to put on the team jersey. Everything I’ve seen so far has been wonderful. I’m going to give everything to the club. This is a golden opportunity, and I have to take advantage of it.”
Asked what he brings the team, he said: “Heart, leadership and a positive influence in the locker room.”
Makoun is left-footed, 5-11, and spent eight years with Venezuelan club Zamora. He played for Venezuela in the U17 and U20 World Cups. He was born in Valencia, Venezuela, and his mother is Venezuelan, but he also has a Belgian passport because his Cameroonian father lives in Belgium.
Last week Inter Miami signed its first two players — Argentine 19-year-olds Matias Pellegrini and Julian Carranaza. McDonough said he hoped to have as many as eight players signed by the end of September, and co-owner Jorge Mas said he expects a coach to be hired in the next three to four weeks.
In other team news, Napoli coach Carlo Ancelotti, in town for Wednesday’s game against FC Barcelona at Hard Rock Stadium, was asked at a press conference about the possibility of coaching Inter Miami. Ancelotti, who is under contract until 2021, coached Beckham at AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain.
“Beckham is my friend and was my player, I have a good relationship with him,” Ancelotti said. “I have a contract with Napoli but I think the MLS is improving and could be a good experience in the future.”
Also, Heineken was named the official beer of Inter Miami.
Miami is one of Heineken’s strongest markets nationally, and both Inter Miami and Heineken aim to serve a global audience, so the partnership is “perfect,” said Jonnie Cahill, chief marketing officer at Heineken, which sponsors 14 MLS teams and other clubs around the world.
“Inter Miami has really ambitious ownership and management who are looking at us to say, ‘How big can we make this and what can we do?’, and we know the people of Miami love Heineken and soccer,” Cahill said. “One of the first things we’ll do, you’ll start to see us build up a network of supporters bars where you know for sure the games will be televised, there will be other Inter Miami fans there and you’ll see glassware with the team logo, and promotions when they score goals. We are excited to get started before the team kicks the first ball.”
This story was originally published August 6, 2019 at 12:16 PM.