{"id":660312,"date":"2025-10-07T11:00:05","date_gmt":"2025-10-07T15:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/?p=660312"},"modified":"2025-10-07T04:35:30","modified_gmt":"2025-10-07T08:35:30","slug":"the-worlds-star-the-leagues-leader-mls-bids-farewell-to-sergio-busquets-and-darlington-nagbe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/football\/2025\/10\/07\/the-worlds-star-the-leagues-leader-mls-bids-farewell-to-sergio-busquets-and-darlington-nagbe\/","title":{"rendered":"The World\u2019s Star, The League\u2019s Leader: MLS Bids Farewell to Sergio Busquets and Darlington Nagbe"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two major retirement announcements were recently announced in MLS. Columbus Crew midfielder Darlington Nagbe, age 35, and Inter Miami’s CDM Sergio Busquets, age 37. While Busquets was an international superstar, winning 32 trophies and playing over 700 matches for FC Barcelona<\/a>, and winning the World Cup and UEFA Euros with Spain. Nagbe was a domestic workhorse and leader in the MLS. A gifted, but at times, unappreciated player who made just 25 appearances for the US Men’s National Team, in that time, lifting the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup.<\/p>\n

Sergio Busquets: A Catalan Superstar Who Defined The Midfield Position<\/h2>\n

One day after Lionel Messi signed his contract with Inter Miami, the largest in MLS history, it was another Barcelona legend, Sergio Busquets, who joined Messi’s project with club owners Jorge Mas and David Beckham one day later. Busquets formed a Barcelona legends trio (and later quad with Luis Suarez) alongside Messi, and Jordi Alba that created the most famous and well-known team in MLS history, though they haven’t quite achieved the trophy case<\/a> that was expected of them when they created such a star powered lineup.<\/p>\n

While Messi always made the headlines, and sold the jerseys, it was Busquets who would constantly step in to stabilize an inconsistent, unreliable, and inept Inter Miami defence. Even in his mid to late 30s, Busquets was a mentor to younger players, the stabilizing force and midfield engine of Inter Miami. In 2024 and 2025, his two full seasons at Inter Miami, Busquets would log more minutes and games for the club than he did in multiple full seasons at Barcelona closer to his prime, like 2015-16 and 2019-20, where he was orchestrating the tiki-taka playstyle. A tremendous example of class being permanent, the durable Busquets logged over 4,000 minutes this season across the MLS, Leagues Cup, and FIFA Club World Cup where he battled teams like Porto and PSG.<\/p>\n