Already in the midst of a record-breaking season, Lionel Messi somehow managed to outdo himself in Matchday 12.
The GOAT was back at it in Inter Miami CF's 6-2 rout of the New York Red Bulls at Chase Stadium on Saturday, recording an astonishing six goal contributions (one goal, five assists) to pace another dominant performance from the Herons.
He broke two MLS records in the process:
- Most assists in a single MLS game (5)
- Most goal contributions in a single MLS game (6)
The iconic Argentine combined with Luis Suárez three times to give the Uruguayan superstar a hat trick. He also assisted on each of the tallies from Paraguayan midfielder Matias Rojas, who made his second appearance with the club since his April arrival from Brazilian side Corinthians. The 28-year-old first unleashed a thunderbolt golazo off Messi's set-up in the 48th minute, also finding the net again in the 62nd minute with a cheeky chip after a pinpoint Messi through ball.
In between those strikes, Messi again found the scoresheet himself with a 50th-minute strike. He then racked up three more assists before the contest was complete, all three of which saw Suárez find the back of the net (69', 75' and 81'). That marked a continuation of Suárez's own torrid pace, as he's now up to 10 goals in 11 games on the season, trailing only Messi for the MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi. (Messi holds the assist tiebreaker).
Messi's newest records come just one week after he broke two records in Inter Miami's Matchday 11 fixture at the New England Revolution, becoming the first player in MLS history to record multiple goal contributions in five consecutive games and setting the mark for most goal contributions (16) by any MLS player in the first seven matches of a season.
When the dust settled on Matchday 12, Messi found himself with an unbelievable 10 goals and 12 assists just eight games into his 2024 season. Those exploits have the Herons leading the early Supporters' Shield charge with 24 points from 12 games (7W-2L-3D).
At this point, no record seems safe from the legendary No. 10.
Stats | Result | Date |
---|---|---|
1g, 5a | 6-2 win vs. RBNY | May 4, 2024 |
2g, 1a | 4-1 win at NE | April 27, 2024 |
2g, 1a | 3-1 win vs. NSH | April 20, 2024 |
1g, 1a | 3-2 win at SKC | April 13, 2024 |
1g, 1a | 2-2 draw vs. COL | April 6, 2024 |
2g, 1a | 5-0 win vs. ORL | March 3, 2024 |