Surridge cherishes 'surreal' Messi experience after Nashville move

Sam Surridge is relishing life at Nashville following his summer switch from Nottingham Forest.

The striker, 25, scored on his debut against Club America in the Leagues Cup before adding two more goals to his collection as his new side booked a final date with Lionel Messi's Inter Miami last month.

Nashville lost to the Florida outfit on penalties but Surridge still cherishes coming up against the Argentine superstar.

Speaking exclusively to LiveScore, he said: "It was quite a surreal experience, especially as it was a final.

"It was something I didn't think would happen, playing against Messi in a final, so yeah, it was a bit crazy.

"We felt we should have won with our second-half performance and obviously Messi was the one who scored the equaliser.

"He wasn't really doing much. At one point, he was just standing on the side of the pitch.

"And then suddenly within a minute, he gets the ball and puts it in the top corner. 

"That's something he does in games that I can perhaps try and learn from. But it was all quite incredible, to be honest.

"After Messi's arrival, you can see how much Major League Soccer is growing and the World Cup in 2026 is also going to play a huge part."

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Feeling the heat

Prove yourself

Surridge has had to adapt parts of his game to cope with the new demands at Nashville.

He added: "I've had to change a bit. Even though I'm a striker, I love defending and pressing.

"So now I need to learn to pick my moments, rather than blow myself out in the first 30 minutes. If you do that, the heat and humidity makes it so hard to catch your breath."

Despite the tricky weather conditions, Surridge can see others following his path to the MLS. 

He said: "If players want to go and prove themselves at a good level, why not?

"It's definitely something they should do. You're experiencing different ways of playing football and it can only improve your game.

"I think you'll see a lot more players coming out in the next few years."