Messi has 'saved' MLS but ex-Premier League star tells rivals to channel Ramos to stop him

Messi ended nearly a year of speculation about his future by penning a two-a-half-year contact with Inter Miami, in a deal worth around £40million a year.

The Argentina international will be joined at Inter Miami by former Barcelona teammate Sergio Busquets and was unveiled to a sell-out crowd in Florida yesterday.

The likes of David Beckham, Andrea Pirlo, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and David Villa have all plied their trade in the US before but the capture of the greatest player in the world could be a game changing moment.

Not only will interest surge in MLS worldwide, but it also means the USA is an even more attractive proposition for players at a time where some are signing lucrative contracts in Saudi Arabia.

Upcoming matches are already sold out and for Cameron - who played for Stoke City and QPR in the England - the arrival of Messi will lead to huge improvements in MLS standards.

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Speaking exclusively to talkSPORT, Cameron said: "The impact he has had so far has been astronomical. The owners, I'm sure, are all happy.

"[With] the Apple deal, I think he saved the league, essentially [because] the subscribers and viewership was a bit down and they really wanted to push and people know what Messi brings.

"This is a guy that's one of the best players to have ever played and he and Ronaldo are two players that have changed the game in the most unbelievable way. Now Messi's coming here to the States, what his viewership [brings] and what he's accomplished just raises the level here in MLS.

"Players will experience what calibre of player he actually is on the field. I also hope he brings a sense of professionalism still for these younger players to see how he continues to work hard and do everything right and raise the level because that's going to have a big impact both on and off the field. Everywhere you go is going to be sold out.

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"Players playing against Messi will be in such awe seeing him play and will be like: 'I'm playing against Messi,' but then they'll realise they actually have to play and he's actually just like a normal person.

"Having Busquets [join Inter Miami as well], they have that relationship on and off the field and they've been at Barcelona for so long [and] I'm sure we'll see a few more players with links to Messi [join the MLS]. It's massive.

"Messi is the one running the show now for MLS because he's come in and [if] things need to be improved both on and off the pitch, if he says something, I'm sure it will improve and they'll get better.

"The demand will be so much higher and it will be great for the league and great for the players."

Cameron now resides in Miami having announced his retirement from football earlier this year and has plenty of experience of playing in the MLS with Houston Dynamo as well as FC Cincinnati.

If Messi is expecting an easy ride in the USA, though, he'll be prepared for a shock and Cameron urged his former MLS teammates to channel their inner Sergio Ramos when taking on the Argentina superstar.

"The athleticism and the league is at a really good level and it's improving every single year," Cameron finished.

"It's going to be competitive. Americans are known for the athleticism and their speed and power and I think he'll experience that for sure.

"He'll witness that there's a big audience here for football and they have an appetite for it and it's the beginning of something that's probably going to explode here in the States, with the World Cup coming, the Copa America and then you have the Club World Cup coming.

"I remember Jurgen [Klinsmann, former US national team manager] when we played Argentina [and] we had a mixture of some guys playing in Europe and some guys playing in MLS.

"Jurgen would say: 'Don't give him too much respect. If you give him respect, you're giving him time and you're allowing him to do what he does best. Think of it as they're just normal players. Yes, they think on a different level, but you have to match that.'

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"It was a point where it was kind of half and half where you see guys that were confident going into the game and then some of the guys were really, really, hesitant and they didn't want to get into a tackle because they didn't want to get their pants pulled down essentially!

"That's when you have to be Sergio Ramos and get stuck in and make it really uncomfortable and be hard to beat, but with a respect."