Lionel Messi’s former Inter Miami teammate Drake Callender took to social media to post a farewell message following his departure from the club. Drake, who joined the Herons in 2019, left the Florida-based club on Tuesday, August 19, for Charlotte FC.Last week, reports emerged that Inter Miami reached an agreement with Charlotte for the transfer of Callender, a news that didn’t sit well with fans. Callender spent his early professional years in Inter Miami CF II before stepping into the first-team spotlight in 2022.Confirming his departure, the 27-year-old wrote in a lengthy post on Instagram, thanking Inter Miami, his former teammates, and the fans for the love and support he received over six years at the club.“To my first professional club @intermiamicf, I want to thank you and everyone that I’ve met and had the opportunity to grow with throughout the last six years. I’m very proud of my time here and more importantly the relationships I’ve built. We won trophies, we endured tough moments, and brought people together through this game. I wish everyone the best going forward. To the fans, you always supported me and I can’t thank you enough for all the love I’ve received during my time here,” Callender wrote. View this post on Instagram Instagram PostThe crowning moment of Callender’s career at Inter Miami came during Lionel Messi’s debut season. The American shot-stopper played a key role in the club’s first-ever trophy. He scored in the penalty shootout in the Leagues Cup final against Nashville in 2023 and denied his opposite number Elliot Panicco to secure the trophy for Miami. Callender followed it with another landmark achievement in 2024, helping the club win the Supporters’ Shield with a league-record 74 points.“I see his dedication to the sport” – When former Inter Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender opened up about playing with Lionel MessiBack in 2023, Drake Callender opened up on the kind of teammate Lionel Messi was. Messi joined the Herons from Paris Saint-Germain in July 2023 and immediately adapted to life at the MLS club.In an interview with US Soccer, Callender said of Lionel Messi:"He’s a great teammate. He’s kind of shy and, you know, soft-spoken. I always have to think that this guy is coming to a whole new league, a whole new country. He’s probably trying to get settled. Everything is new for him, you know? So I just did my best to help him feel welcome. I tried not to fanboy or anything and I think we’ve developed your pretty average standard teammate relationship."I see his dedication to the sport and to this team. In the short time he’s been with us, he’s really bought into what we’re trying to do and he’s made some great contributions on the field and off. He just wants to be one of the guys, you know? He wants to be one of our teammates and he’s very humble and that’s something that I respect a lot. And so seeing how he operates on the training field, like the importance that he puts on training and in games, you can still see the fire in his eyes when he competes and it shows me what kind of level we need to compete at if we’re to be ambitious and want to win games."Drake Callender and Lionel Messi shared the pitch 39 times at Inter Miami.