In the 26th minute, Messi received the ball from Ian Fray on the right side of the penalty area. The Argentine superstar executed his familiar move, skillfully shifting the ball to his left foot before firing a quick, low shot into the far corner. Goalkeeper Andre Blake was caught off guard, rooted to the spot with no chance to save. The goal put Inter Miami ahead of Philadelphia 2-1.

Inter Miami's Leo Messi (right) controls the ball under pressure from Philadelphia Union's Kai Wagner during the first half of an MLS match at Subaru Park, Chester, Pennsylvania, United States on 19/8. *Photo: AP*

Messi smiled and celebrated with his teammates after scoring. This was the Inter Miami captain's first goal since his father passed away.

Prior to this match, Messi had scored in only one of his seven most recent games for club and country. Before this less productive run, he had scored in 10 of 11 matches from early may until the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup. He had also gone three consecutive MLS matches without a goal; his longest scoring drought in the league before this was six consecutive matches from september 2023 to march 2024.

The goal against Philadelphia ended Messi's period of inefficiency in front of goal in MLS. He needed only one clear opportunity to make a difference, scoring from a shot with an expected goals (xG) statistic of just 0.08, indicating an 8% chance of becoming a goal.

Before and after his goal, Messi remained central to Inter Miami's attacks. In the 21st minute, he combined with Daniel Pinter before passing left to Luis Suarez, allowing the Uruguayan forward to assist Pinter for the 1-1 equalizer.

In the 70th minute, the Inter Miami captain again demonstrated his ability to create danger, delivering a through ball from about 30 meters that bypassed several Philadelphia players to find Pinter. However, the forward's shot from a tight angle was saved by goalkeeper Andre Blake.

Messi also attempted two direct free kicks in the second half but was unsuccessful. In the 78th minute, his close-range shot was headed away by a Philadelphia defender. He finished the match with 7.8 points, the highest for the away team.

In second-half stoppage time, both teams received red cards. Yannick Bright and Cavan Sullivan were both sent off after a skirmish between players from the two sides. Despite this, the remaining time was insufficient for either team to secure all three points.

Inter Miami had lost three consecutive matches across all competitions before earning one point from Philadelphia. Prior to that, they had lost only three of 30 matches since october 2025. Messi's team is currently 5 points behind Eastern Conference leaders Nashville SC.

For Messi, the most important aspect was rediscovering his scoring touch in MLS. The 39-year-old superstar now shares the top spot on the scoring chart with Petar Musa (Dallas).

In three days, Inter Miami will play their next MLS match against Toronto at Nu Stadium.

Xuan Binh