Three Takeaways As Lionel Messi Tears Up the History Books for Inter Miami
Lionel Messi was back to his best on Saturday night, scoring four goals to lead Inter Miami to the club’s largest-ever winning margin, a 7–1 trouncing against former teammate Alexis Sánchez and CF Montréal.
Critics had grown loud around Inter Miami heading into the weekend. The club had gone five games without a win across all competitions and Messi, despite scoring, had appeared frustrated with the quality of the players around him.
Yet, there’s little that can keep the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner down for long—not even at 39 years old.
As much as his ability to control a game every time out might be waning in the twilight of his career, he still has the qualities to show out as one of the best in the world. That’s what he did at Nu Stadium on Saturday, securing the club’s third MLS win at the new ground.
Messi scored on a deflected free kick in the 40th minute, before securing a brace in the 52nd minute with a stunning solo run, dribbling past four defenders in a similar fashion to many of his best moments with Barcelona and Argentina. He chipped Montréal goalkeeper Thomas Gillier for his hat-trick soon after, before scoring a perfectly curled free kick in second-half stoppage time to complete the four-goal night.
Outside of his own strikes, he also set up Luis Suárez for the Uruguayan’s 11th goal of the campaign, while Miami homegrown star Alex Shaw netted his first goal for the club to help complete the lofty victory.
Messi Magic Returns—But It Never Really Left
Messi entered Saturday’s MLS slate tied for fourth in the MLS Golden Boot standings, trailing FC Dallas’ Petar Musa, who held the lead at 16 goals. By the end of the night, Messi had 18 goals and stood alone atop the race, with Musa not playing until Sunday against the red-hot St. Louis CITY SC.
While Miami often relies too much on Messi, it is clear the tactic can still work—especially against a team like Montréal, among the weaker sides in MLS, despite recently adding Sánchez and often offering pesky form. After all, Miami’s last win came against the Quebec side, with the four games in between seeing two losses and a pair of draws.
With his performance, Messi not only brought a much-needed morale boost, but also put himself on the verge of history, with his free-kick goals bringing him to 74 in official matches, just four behind Brazilian legend Marcelinho’s contested record of 78 set-piece strikes.
At the same time, he raised his stock to win a third straight MLS MVP Award, potentially helping turn the vibes around for a Miami side that had entered worrying territory, especially at home, where they had just two wins in MLS play since opening the stadium in April.
It’s become clear that the Messi-focus of the club might not make the team as unbeatable as it has been in some periods since he joined in the summer of 2023, but it does allow for nights like Saturday. And with Messi’s career in the final stages, those experiences should be embraced a little bit more.
“He manifests himself now the same way he manifested himself at that age [when I met him]. The similarities are unbelievable, with his soccer abilities increased by all of his soccer knowledge,” said interim head coach Guillermo Hoyos, who watched from the stands due to suspension.
“But he’s really the same person, with the same soccer conditions that led him to grow and win everything. Honestly, I see something really surprising in him: permanent growth. Not only when he was that age. Today he’s another age, and he keeps growing and getting bigger. There are no words."
Hoyos’s Parting Move—Casemiro a Defender
As much as Messi has brought magic and production through the season for Miami, most other areas of the pitch have struggled for the Herons. Few positions more glaringly, though, than center back, where each of star offseason signing Micael, as well as Maxi Falcón and Gonzalo Luján, have struggled mightily this season.
On Saturday, Hoyos opted to play Brazilian midfielder Casemiro at center back. The move marked a dramatic shift, with the outgoing Argentine manager making a brave tactical choice outside of his usually reserved outlook.
Meanwhile, the choice to place a defensive midfielder—and one who has struggled since joining the club last month—at center back provided an eyebrow-raising look at where the team’s outgoing coaching staff sees the defensive pool.
Casemiro impressed in the role. He scored off a corner kick for his first MLS goal and, defensively, made two tackles, six clearances and nine defensive contributions to keep Montréal’s few offensive moments to a minimum.
Whether incoming manager Cristian “Kily” González sees the former La Liga and Premier League star as having similar potential remains to be seen. Still, there could be a new option for the Herons at the heart of their defensive setup.
De Paul’s Struggles Continue
Rodrigo De Paul picked up his 10th assist of the season in the win, but his struggles on the defensive side, where he is supposed to thrive, continued. If it weren’t for him, Miami may be looking at a 7–0 win, rather than allowing a goal to MLS veteran Fabian Herbers, who netted just his 21st goal of his career in 233 games.
While the Argentine midfielder looked more engaged for his full showing, he struggled to stay aware centrally while playing a slightly wider role than usual. Without Casemiro to clean things up in defensive midfield, Miami were left fragile, leaning only on Yannick Bright and were caught out.
As seen in the clip of Herbers’s goal above, De Paul gets caught ball-watching when the play shifted to Montréal’s Noah Streit. Herbers, meanwhile, stood unmarked at the top of the box before Streit picked out the simple pass to allow a clear shot, with De Paul caught out of position.
After signing with Miami from Atlético Madrid last summer, there were hopes that De Paul could become a force on both sides of the ball in MLS. Instead, his efforts have been inconsistent, and his level of play has dropped, all while he takes regular trips back to Argentina between regular-season games.
Yet, he will look to improve his personal form, and the rest of the team will look to keep the good vibes rolling next week as they take on Atlanta United, hoping to close the 10-point gap between them and Nashville SC in the race for the Supporters’ Shield and Eastern Conference lead.
