Lionel Messi needed just one touch to topple the New England Revolution and propel Inter Miami to a record victory on a wild final day of the MLS regular season.
Days away from scoring a hat-trick for Argentina 7,000 kilometers away, he stepped into a 2-2 draw on Saturday with the clocks at Inter’s Chase Stadium reading 57:00.
As the fans bowed to their GOAT, play resumed around the 57:15 mark with Miami needing a goal to complete a comeback and set the MLS record for points in a single season.
And at 57:31, with his first touch after coming on as a substitute, Messi helped create it. He checked for the ball at the top of the penalty area. He clipped it over the top of a frozen Revs defence, and into the path of Jordi Alba, who took on Benjamin Cremaschi for the winner.
Oh, and he didn’t stop there. Almost exactly twenty minutes later, Messi combined with Luis Suarez to score to double Miami’s lead.
Shortly afterwards, he scored his 19th goal of the 2024 MLS season – in just 19 games (16 starts) – to seal the deal.
And then, for good measure, he scored his twentieth and completed his second hat-trick in five days.
The 6-2 win took Inter to 74 points, one more than the Revs earned in 2021, the previous high.
And like much of Miami’s season, it was glorious, but also unnecessarily awkward and nerve-wracking.
For the 17th time in 34 games, Miami conceded first, this time in 72 seconds. The main culprit was center back Héctor MartÃnez, one of several defenders who were shaky in 2024 and still left head coach Tata Martino searching for a solid defensive duo. His lineup changes almost every game.
The Herons won the Supporters’ Shield, the MLS regular-season title, but not because they were good defensively. They have given up the first goal more times than they have scored – a remarkable statistic for a champion.
But they have almost always responded. They have now won nine (and drawn four) of the seventeen games in which they have conceded first.
On Saturday, in the 34th minute, the teams fell two goals behind. They conceded the type of goal so ridiculously poorly that the official MLS X account chose not to post it. The ball weaved through several Miami players and eventually through the legs of goalkeeper Drake Callender, over the line and into the net.
But Suarez scored twice just before halftime to make it 2-2.
Messi then came in after 57 minutes and that’s when the game really changed. Miami walked away with the win and the points record. Next up: the playoffs, which start next weekend.
MLS Eastern Conference playoff matchups and bracket
Elsewhere in the East, Montreal retained a spot in the playoffs, but DC United flopped, coughing up the final spot to Atlanta United.
The matchups are as follows:
1. InterMiami
8. Play-in winner (Atlanta or Montreal)
4. Orlando City
5. Charlotte FC
2. Columbus crew
7. New York Red Bulls
3. FC Cincinnati
6. NYCFC
The play-in game between Atlanta and Montreal is Tuesday or Wednesday. The real first round starts on Friday, October 25.
Drama in the Western Conference
There was a lot more drama in the Western Conference.
The LA Galaxy went into Decision Day needing only a draw against Houston to clinch the top seed. If they lost, LAFC could steal the No. 1 spot from their rivals with a multiple-goal victory over the San Jose Earthquakes.
When the clock struck 90:00 in each match, the Galaxy clung to the top of the table. They trailed Houston 1-0, but LAFC only led the lowly Earthquakes 2-1 – meaning the two teams were tied on goal difference, with the Galaxy maintaining a slim lead on the goals scored tiebreaker.
Then LAFC scored in the 91st minute to take the lead on goal difference.
The Galaxy were then awarded a penalty in the 95th minute in Houston via a VAR review. In the 96th, Gabriel Pec converted from the spot and the Galaxy looked to have won the conference by one point, with the game drawn 1–1.
But in the 101st minute in Houston, as LAFC watched and hoped from a distance, Houston defender Daniel Steres stunned the Galaxy with a header, moving the Galaxy back to second place and giving LA the No. 1 seed.
The full Western Conference seedings and matchups are:
1. LAFC
8. Play-in winner (Vancouver Whitecaps or Portland Timbers)
4. Seattle sirens
5. Houston Dynamo
2. LA system
7. Colorado Rapids
3. Real salt lake
6. Minnesota United
