Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham has offered his first public comments on the impending signing of Lionel Messi, saying that the Argentine superstar joining is a “massive moment” for the club.

Messi announced his intention to join Inter Miami last month, though the club has not officially confirmed the signing yet.

Beckham said that he was caught off guard when the former Barcelona and PSG star made the announcement, though the surprise was more in the timing than the message itself.

“A couple of weeks ago, I woke up to about a million messages on my phone. I was thinking, ‘What’s gone off? I don’t usually get this many messages’. All of a sudden, I hear Leo has come out and announced he’s coming to Miami. Obviously, it wasn’t a surprise to me,” Beckham said at a  “Lessons In Leadership” event for the Lira Winston Fellowships in London.

In terms of its impact on MLS, Messi’s signing has been compared to Beckham joining the LA Galaxy in 2007 — a deal that included an option to purchase a MLS team for just $25 million.

Having taken up that option with Inter Miami, Beckham is relishing the chance to make the club a flagship in MLS.

“I have always said, from the word go, that if I had the opportunity to bring the best players in the game to Miami, at whatever time of their careers, I would do that. I have always made that commitment to our fans,” Beckham added.

“So when I hear that one of the best players — if not the best player — who has won everything in the game, who is still a great player, still young and still doing what he’s doing, wants to play for my team, it’s a massive moment for us.”

[prosoccerwire]