In true Messi fashion, Lionel Messi celebrated his injury comeback on Saturday by setting a Major League Soccer (MLS) record, assisting on another goal, and scoring two goals in just four minutes.
Messi made his first appearance for Inter Miami in over three months, and in just 19 games—10 fewer than anybody else—he became the fastest player in league history to achieve 15 goals and 15 assists. On Saturday, he contributed to all three of Miami’s goals as his club defeated the Philadelphia Union 3-1.
These attempts followed Miami’s disastrous start to the match, as Mikael Uhre rifled the ball past goalie Drake Callender’s outstretched fingertips and into the net in the first minute of play.
Messi grabbed a pass from Luis Suárez inside the box and put the ball into the net to tie the score with Miami down 1-0. The Argentine scored his second goal four minutes later, deceiving the Philadelphia defenders and prodding the ball into the net from nearly the same place.
In the 85th minute, Callender’s last-ditch save kept Philadelphia from tying the score, but Miami quickly took the lead when Messi switched roles and fed Suárez, who finished neatly in the corner of the net. Suárez’s goal, his 17th of the season, established a new club record for the most goals scored in a single Major League Soccer regular season.
Messi afterwards acknowledged that he was a “bit fatigued.” Messi has not played since July 14 when he was hurt while representing Argentina in the Copa América final.
“I had been off the field for a long time, and the heat and humidity in Miami do not help much either,” he remarked after the game, according to TNT Sports, which is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery along with CNN.
“We decided that I would start since little by little I was training with the group and feeling well, and I am quite happy – extremely happy.”
