Messi wins his 46th trophy as Inter Miami wins the MLS Supporters' Shield
Messi scored twice, Luis Suarez added another and Inter Miami held off a second-half comeback attempt by defending champion Columbus Crew to win 3-2 and clinch the MLS Supporters' Shield on Wednesday night.
Inter Miami owner Jorge Mas started the celebration in the locker room, presenting the Supporters' Shield trophy to the team. Messi lifted the trophy alongside Mas, while holding a bottle of his "Mas+ by Messi" drink above his head. Let's talk about product endorsements.
Inter Miami won the Leagues Cup title last year, shortly after gaining global attention with the arrival of Messi in July 2023. The Supporters' Shield, the title awarded to MLS regular-season champions, is the club's second in the Messi era. But Inter Miami is already focused on reaching the MLS Cup final on Dec. 7 and, potentially, playing in next year's FIFA Club World Cup in the United States.
“Leo was the game-changer,” said Inter Miami coach Tata Martino, who also coached Messi at FC Barcelona and with the Argentina national team. “Our goal is to get to December 7 and we would like to play in the Club World Cup. With the names we have in our team, they could just give us a spot, but it would be more fair and meaningful if we earned it, and this Supporters' Shield was very important for us.”
Messi scored his first goal with his left foot in the 45th minute, scoring a patented free kick that deflected into the left side of the net just before halftime (45+4') to give Inter Miami a 2-0 lead ahead of a dramatic second half.
Suarez scored his team-high 18th goal in the 48th minute, two minutes after Crew star Diego Rossi opened the second half with a goal.
Crew leading scorer Cucho Hernandez scored a penalty kick in the 61st minute, but his second penalty kick to tie the game in the 84th minute was denied by Inter Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender.
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The game lived up to its billing as the best of the MLS season thanks to the Crew's persistence, but Messi's greatness left its mark.
“Today, in probably the most important game we have played this year so far, we rediscovered the version of Leo that defines games and championships,” Martino said.
Messi, a World Cup champion and two-time Copa America winner, played his fifth match since returning from a right ankle injury sustained during the Copa America final in July.
Messi scored three goals in his first four games, but still came in for criticism for looking tired and needing more time to get back to fitness. He was even partly blamed for coming into the game with three consecutive draws, as the club lacked the collective rhythm to bring its star player back into the lineup.
Messi may still need some time to reach the form we're used to seeing from the world's best player ahead of the MLS Cup Playoffs, but he was more than good enough for Inter Miami in Columbus.
And as much as Messi helped Inter Miami secure the MLS Supporters' Shield, his teammates deserve plenty of praise for their work in keeping the club atop the MLS standings for most of the season.
Messi has 17 goals in 17 games, despite missing 15 of Inter Miami's MLS games this season. Inter Miami went 10-2-3 (WDL) without Messi during the MLS season, accounting for 32 of the 68 points the club has accumulated entering its final two games. From June 15 to August 31, Inter Miami played nine games without an injured Messi and won eight of them (24 points).
"We had a lot of injuries throughout the year, and we couldn't all be together... but the group made the most of every difficult game," Messi said.
Inter Miami has two games left (Saturday at Toronto and Oct. 19 against the New England Revolution) to compete for the MLS single-season points record. Inter Miami has 68 points after the Crew win and would reach 74 with two more wins. The record set by the Revolution in 2021 is 73 points.
“Even though we have a great opportunity to make history in that aspect, I also think it’s less important,” Messi said of the MLS points record. He has his sights set on a long playoff run.
“The first objective has been achieved and now we have to think about what comes next, right? The first (playoff match) is a best of three, but then it is one game (each). In one game anything can happen, but we have a big advantage in that we play all the games at home, which is what we were looking for. I think we are very, very strong at home.”
Inter Miami, a club co-owned by brothers Jorge and Jose Mas and David Beckham, has gone from a few winners to champions of the Supporters' Shield. The club, which joined the league in 2020, failed to qualify for the playoffs last year after Messi's arrival.
Inter Miami has now secured home-field advantage heading into the MLS Cup Playoffs, where a possible third title for the club and 47th for Messi awaits.
