Lionel Messi continued his exceptional run of form on Thursday morning by scoring twice in Inter Miami’s 2–1 win over the New England Revolution, becoming the first player in Major League Soccer (MLS) history to score multiple goals in four consecutive league matches.
The 38-year-old Argentine forward put Inter Miami ahead in the 27th minute at Gillette Stadium, capitalising on a defensive error before slotting home a clinical left-footed strike from inside the area. He doubled the lead just before the break, latching onto a perfectly weighted through ball from Sergio Busquets and curling another left-footed finish past goalkeeper Aljaz Ivacic.
With those goals, Messi has now scored eight times in his last four MLS appearances, a feat never before achieved in the league. He began the record-breaking streak in late May with two goals against Montreal, followed by braces against Columbus and again against Montreal after returning from Club World Cup duties.
🐐🤯⬇️
Montréal: ⚽⚽
Columbus: ⚽⚽
Montréal: ⚽⚽
New England: ⚽⚽ pic.twitter.com/LuEAIv86FB— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) July 10, 2025
Miami briefly paused their league campaign to take part in the FIFA Club World Cup, where they were knocked out in the round of 16 by Paris Saint-Germain. Messi scored once across four matches in that tournament, but resumed league action in spectacular fashion.
“Obviously, Leo is a special player,” said head coach Javier Mascherano. “For me, he’s the best player to have played this sport. It’s incredible how he keeps doing things we thought belonged to another era.”
Mascherano praised Messi’s understanding with fellow Barcelona legend Busquets, calling their second goal a result of instinctive connection. “They’ve played together for so long that they just understand each other without speaking,” he said.
Leo makes it two! 🐐
For the fourth straight MLS game, Messi has a brace. pic.twitter.com/D3Lyt82sd4
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) July 10, 2025
Veteran goalkeeper Oscar Ustari also impressed, making six saves to preserve Miami’s lead until Carles Gil pulled one back for New England in the 79th minute with a powerful long-range strike.
The result lifted Inter Miami from sixth to fifth in the Eastern Conference, now on 35 points with three games in hand over leaders FC Cincinnati. Messi’s tally of 14 goals in 15 league games puts him just two behind Golden Boot leader Sam Surridge, who has played six more matches.
With a congested fixture list ahead, Mascherano acknowledged the challenge of managing Messi’s workload. “We know we’ll have to find the right time to rest him,” he admitted. “But today’s game was too tight to take him off.”
Inter Miami next face Nashville on Sunday morning, the first of three matches in a demanding 10-day stretch.