Messi leads Inter Miami to Playoffs with brace, Suárez and Shield in sight

Messi Leads Inter Miami to Victory and MLS Playoffs

Lionel Messi, once again, proved his worth at the helm of Inter Miami CF, scoring two crucial goals in the second half of the match against New York City FC. This outstanding performance, which raised his personal tally to five goals in the last nine days, secured a resounding 4-0 victory and a place in the 2025 Major League Soccer playoffs. Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano highlighted the importance of this achievement, but emphasized that it is only the beginning for a team with ambitions to repeat as Supporters’ Shield champions.

We are happy and have the peace of mind of having achieved the first objective, which was to qualify for the playoffs. Now we will try to finish as high as possible in the standings, which would allow us to have a home advantage.

Javier Mascherano

In a gesture of camaraderie, Messi ceded the opportunity to score a hat-trick to his teammate, Luis Suárez, when Inter Miami was awarded a penalty in the 83rd minute.

He has done that many times in his career. Sometimes he looks at some teammates who haven’t scored and need a goal more than he does. He tried to help in this way. For me, it’s great. He tried to show everyone the team spirit, trying to involve all the players, especially Luis, who needed to score. So it’s great.

Javier Mascherano

Messi’s goal-scoring ability has been impressive, with eight matches in the last twelve for Inter Miami where he has scored two or more goals. This makes him the fourth player in MLS history to achieve this feat in a single season.

The team is now focusing on the next challenge against Toronto FC on Saturday night, with the aim of securing the 2025 Supporters’ Shield.

We are happy because we are now officially qualified for the playoffs. That was very important for us. Now we have to move forward. We know we have two games pending, so we will try to rest and recover before going to Toronto. We know how difficult Saturday will be because we have less than 72 hours to play, but we will try to play as well as possible and win the game and qualify as high as possible. If we can win the remaining five games we have, it will be great and we will have the opportunity to fight for the Supporters’ Shield.

Javier Mascherano

Currently, Inter Miami is in third place in the Eastern Conference standings with 55 points in 29 games, two games away from the leaders, Philadelphia Union.