ATLANTA — If anybody knows the challenges of facing Lionel Messi and his Inter Miami teammates Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, it is Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique, who coached the quartet at FC Barcelona, a spectacular team that also included Javier Mascherano, now the Miami coach.

That team knocked PSG out of the Champions League Final 16 on Mar. 8, 2017, with a 6-1 victory that included goals by Messi and Suarez. Busquets and Mascherano were on the field that day and Alba was on the bench.

Enrique never imagined then that he would find himself facing his five former players at the Club World Cup Round of 16 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Sunday afternoon. It will also be the first time Messi goes up against PSG, where he played from 2021-23 and left under less-than-ideal circumstances.

On the eve of the game, Enrique allowed himself to get nostalgic.

“It is a special, emotional game for me, and for our players who played with Leo, for sure,” Enrique said. “They are more than just players for me. It will be nice to spend even 10 minutes with them before and after the game.

“When we saw that we would get Inter Miami, we knew it would be special and a difficult game because we know their quality and of what they are capable. They have shown it in this competition by reaching the final 16 and it will be more complicated than people imagine because they are winners. Those are players who have won a lot over their careers, they have that winning spirit inside them and will have that their entire lives.”

Enrique dismissed any suggestion that the aging former Barca stars no longer have what it takes to compete at an elite level.

“There is no question they still have the level and quality; they have not lost it,” he said. “I watched all three of their matches and prior matches, too. If we don’t pressure them, we will be trouble because Busquets is still the same, Leo Messi with the ball is unique, Luis Suarez, if you saw the last goal he scored [against Palmeiras]; and Jordi Alba racing forward from deep is the same, the Messi-to-Jordi pass is something all of us in the world of football know. And, they have a coach like Mascherano.”

Enrique added that he is not surprised Mascherano became a coach. He said he saw signs of the Argentine’s leadership and high soccer IQ when he was a player. He recalled a conversation he had with Mascherano about coaching at the British School of Barcelona, where their daughters were classmates at the time.

“Without a doubt, I knew he would be a coach,” Enrique said. “If there were two players that I had no doubt had traits to be good coaches, because they already were on the field, it was Masche and Busquets. No doubt Busi would be a great coach, if he wants. Those two were extensions of the coaching staff on the field.”

He stressed how much he enjoyed working with Messi and seeing his brilliance up close.

“I enjoyed it not only over those three years as his coach but also over countless training sessions, maybe 200 training sessions each season, I saw Leo do things in training that were not human, incredible things ... I have fond memories of that time.”

Enrique was asked which player or players he might employ to contain Messi. He smiled and replied: “Messi can dribble past any player. If we want to stop him, it cannot be just one player because we will be dead. We need a collective effort. ... There is no better stage for us to compete than in this wonderful stadium, facing a team with a man named Leo Messi, who is revered not just for all of us who are Culers [Barca fans], but for everyone who cherishes him as a player.”

A spot in the quarterfinals is on the line Sunday, as well as $13.1 million for reaching the next stage of the tournament. Inter Miami has already earned $21.05 million by getting a win and two ties in the group stage and advancing to the Round of 16.

Inter Miami leads TNT viewership

Wherever Messi goes, soccer eyeballs follow. That has surely been the case during the Club World Cup over the past two weeks and continues on Sunday, as a crowd of more than 60,000 is expected at Mercedes-Benz Stadium to see the matchup between Inter Miami and PSG.

Inter Miami was the most watched team on TNT through Wednesday’s matches.

Although the games were streamed for free on DAZN.com and many fans watched on Spanish language stations, 676,000 viewers tuned in to TNT Sports and its partner platforms for Inter Miami’s game against Brazilian club Palmeiras on Monday night. That was the highest-rated group stage game. The broadcast peaked at 875,000 viewers.

Inter Miami’s three matches thus far were among the most watched of the tournament, per TNT.

The next most-watched matches were Bayern Munich vs. Boca Juniors (468,000 viewers), Real Madrid vs. Pachuca (391,000 viewers), and PSG vs. Atlético Madrid (378,000 viewers).

Sunday’s game kicks off at noon and will be shown on TNT, DAZN.com and Univision.

Inter Miami Players Pumped for PSG

After exceeding expectations and getting through the group stage undefeated, Inter Miami players say they are ready for the next challenge.

“We’re all excited to play in a game like this, at the same time, we know what the outside noise is, but we just focus on ourselves,” said Fafa Picault. “We believe in ourselves fully. Once you get out of the group stage, the next goal is just to win. Now it’s knockouts, and anything can happen.”

Fede Redondo added: “We know we are playing the best team in the world at the moment, and we need a perfect game. We know that at the beginning we were not favored to get out of the group. We played very well and achieved that objective and now we are facing the best team. We always want to compete. We always want to be champions, but we know we were not expected to even survive the group.”

Enrique Complains about Fields

Enrique criticized the field conditions at Seattle’s Lumen Field, where natural grass was laid over artificial turf per FIFA requirements. It remains to be seen how he will feel about Mercedes-Benz Stadium’s field, which underwent a similar transformation.

“The ball bounces like a rabbit,” Enrique said of Lumen Field after their 2-0 win over the Sounders. “The field used to be artificial turf, and now it’s natural grass laid over it, which means it has to be watered manually. They watered it during halftime, but it dries out in 10 minutes. It’s a big problem for the way we play.

“I’m saying this because we won. Otherwise, people might think we’re just complaining. But the truth is, it’s hard to play our game under these conditions. FIFA really needs to take this seriously — not just the stadium fields but also the training pitches

“If we’re calling this the best club tournament in the world, it should have world-class facilities. I mean, I can’t imagine an NBA game played on a court full of holes.”

PSG, Inter Miami Fans Flock to Atlanta

A PSG fan from New Jersey drove eight hours to Atlanta earlier this week and has been camping out in his car for a chance to meet his idols. He finally got his chance on Thursday, according to the club website.

His name is Aly and he is originally from Guinea.

“I’ve been here for three days because this club is my whole life!” he said. “I’ve been sleeping in my car for three days but it’s no problem because I’m with my club.

“I’ve been a supporter for a long time, since I was little, I’ve seen Pauleta, Hoarau, Okocha. ... I’ve been through everything with PSG, good and bad. I never gave up, I always believed in this club and its players. The club is everything to me. This club makes me happier than anything else. It’s my whole life. I cried all the tears in my body after the Champions League final. It was the best day of my life.”

Thursday after training, players noticed him and stopped to say hello. They gave him a signed jersey.

“It really is a dream come true. We became champions of Europe a month ago and today I’m with them. I’m living the dream! I’m so happy, you can’t imagine. ... It’s PSG! It’s my club. I’m very happy, I’m beside myself! I’m counting on you guys on Sunday!”

Meanwhile, Inter Miami fans were also making their way to Atlanta for the big game.

Nicolas Stone Perez, 22, a Coral Gables resident who plays soccer at MIT, flew in for the game. He played at Ransom Everglades High School and his family has been diehard Inter Miami fans since the pre-Messi days. They also followed Miami FC and the Strikers before they folded.

“I can’t believe they made it this far and they’ve been very impressive in the three games” he said. “They exceeded most of our expectations. I didn’t want to miss this for anything. I also flew from Boston to Miami for Messi’s first game in 2023. We never thought our local team would have Messi and be on this stage.”

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