Lionel Messi‘s first full season in the MLS is now underway following his move to Inter Miami during the 2023 summer transfer window.
The Barcelona legend left Paris Saint-Germain when his contract expired at the end of June 2023 and despite speculation linking him with a move to the Saudi Pro League or back to Camp Nou, he signed for David Beckham’s Inter instead.
His ex-Barca team-mates Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba soon joined too, while Luis Suarez became the latest former Blaugrana star to sign for Inter in January 2024.
While Messi helped them win the Leagues Cup just weeks after his arrival (their first ever major trophy as a club), he will be hoping to fare much better in the MLS this season.
Inter finished 14th out of 15 teams in the Eastern Conference in 2023 and failed to qualify for the play-offs during his first campaign at the club.
Messi has already proven that he remains a prominent football figure in the USA, and he will hope to build on the success of his first six months in Florida.
This page will be regularly updated to showcase Messi’s individual club statistics for Inter Miami throughout the 2024 season.
Lionel Messi: 2024 stats
Appearances: 9
Starts: 9
Goals: 10
Assists: 9
Lionel Messi in 2024
Messi marked his first competitive appearance of 2024 with an assist during Inter Miami’s 2-0 win over Real Salt Lake during the MLS season opener. The Argentine was unable to open his account for the campaign, but he provided a 39th-minute assist for Robert Taylor, who netted the first goal of the 2024 MLS campaign.
His first goal arrived a matter of days later as he snatched a late equaliser away to LA Galaxy in a 1-1 draw with a sliding finish from a Jordi Alba cutback.
Alba🤝 Messi
Alba to Messi to level the game in LA! pic.twitter.com/mZKgOib94O
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) February 26, 2024
Messi was back among the goals in Inter Miami’s next match, too, as they thrashed Florida arrivals Orlando City 5-0, matching Luis Suarez’s early brace with one of his own, scoring twice around the hour mark at the Chase Stadium.
The Barcelona legend netted another goal during Inter Miami’s 2-2 draw against Nashville CONCACAF Champions Cup, while Suarez scored a dramatic 95th-minute equaliser.
Messi makes it✌️
Diego Gómez finds Messi who puts it away and doubles the lead!#MIAvNSH | 2-0 pic.twitter.com/Psranb2vck
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) March 14, 2024
He did not feature in the 3-2 loss to Montreal on Inter Miami’s return to MLS action but was available for the return leg against Nashville. It proved another productive outing for him as he set up Luis Suarez for the opening goal before chipping in soon after with the second. He was replaced after 50 minutes and did not make the matchday squad for Miami’s 3-1 win over DC United.
Messi remained sidelined as Inter lost 4-0 to New York Red Bulls, despite his former Barca teammates Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba being fit to play.
The same was true against New York City FC on Saturday, with Suarez on target once again in his friend’s absence – although his goal was cancelled out by Alonso Martinez in a 1-1 draw.
Messi finally returned as Inter drew 2-2 with Colorado Rapids on Sunday. The Argentine was only fit enough to start on the bench, but cancelled out Rafael Navarro’s first-half penalty little more than 10 minutes after his half-time introduction for Lawson Sunderland.
After the disappointing midweek loss to Monterrey in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, in which he assisted Diego Gomez for Inter’s only goal in a 3-1 loss, Messi was back to winning ways on Saturday.
Starting alongside long-time friend and college Suarez, Messi scored one and assisted another as Inter ran out 3-2 winners over Sporting KC at their Children’s Mercy Park.
Messi picked up a multiple-goal haul as Inter beat Nashville 3-1, slotting home from a tight angle and converting a penalty either side of assisting Sergio Busquets for his first goal for the club.
And he matched that haul in the very next outing, scoring twice in reply to Tomas Chancalay’s opener as Inter won 4-1 at New England Revolution. HE also assisted Suarez for the final goal.
Arguably Messi’s finest performance in an Inter Miami shirt came against New York Red Bulls in the 12th game of the MLS season as he scored one and assisted five in a 6-2 win, becoming the first player in the history of football to record 1200 goal contributions.
Messi drew his first blank of the season in the following game against Montreal, in which Inter Miami came back from two goals down to win 3-2.
Lionel Messi: 2024 matches played
Inter Miami 2-0 Real Salt Lake, 21 February – MLS
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 0
Assists: 1
LA Galaxy 1-1 Inter Miami, 25 February – MLS
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 1
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 5-0 Orlando City, 2 March – MLS
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 2
Assists: 0
Nashville 2-2 Inter Miami, 7 March – CONCACAF Champions League
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 1
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 2-3 Montreal, 10 March – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 3-1 Nashville, 13 March – CONCACAF Champions League
Minutes Played: 50
Goals: 1
Assists: 1
D.C. United vs Inter Miami, 16 March – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
NY Red Bull 4-0 Inter Miami, 23 March – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 1-1 New York City, 30 March – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 1-2 Monterrey, 4 April – CCC
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 2-2 Colorado Rapids, 7 April – CCC
Minutes Played: 45
Goals: 1
Assists: 0
Monterrey 3-1 Inter Miami, 11 April – CCC
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 0
Assists: 1
Sporting KC 2-3 Inter Miami, 13 April – MLS
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 1
Assists: 1
Inter Miami 3-1 Nashville, 20 April – MLS
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 2
Assists: 1
New England 1-4 Inter Miami, 27 April – MLS
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 2
Assists: 1
Inter Miami 6-2 NY Red Bulls, 4 May – MLS
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 1
Assists: 5
Montreal 2-3 Inter Miami, 11 May – MLS
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Orlando City 0-0 Inter Miami, 15 May – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Inter Miami fixtures
Inter Miami vs D.C. United, 18 May – MLS
Vancouver vs Inter Miami, 25 May – MLS
Inter Miami vs Atlanta United, 29 May – MLS
Inter Miami vs St. Louis, 1 June – MLS
Philadelphia vs Inter Miami, 15 June – MLS
Inter Miami vs Columbus, 19 June – MLS
Nashville vs Inter Miami, 29 June – MLS
Charlotte vs Inter Miami, 3 July – MLS
Cincinnati vs Inter Miami, 6 July – MLS
Inter Miami vs Toronto, 17 July – MLS
Inter Miami vs Chicago, 20 July – MLS
Inter Miami vs Cincinnati, 24 August – MLS
Chicago vs Inter Miami, 31 August – MLS
Inter Miami vs Philadelphia, 14 September – MLS
Atlanta United vs Inter Miami, 18 September – MLS
New York City vs Inter Miami, 21 September – MLS
Inter Miami vs Charlotte, 28 September – MLS
Columbus vs Inter Miami, 2 October – MLS
Toronto vs Inter Miami, 5 October – MLS
Inter Miami vs New England, 19 October – MLS
Lionel Messi: 2023 stats for Inter Miami
Appearances: 15
Starts: 12
Goals: 11
Assists: 5
It didn’t take Messi long to make his mark with Inter Miami. On debut, he grabbed a late winner against Cruz Azul in the Leagues Cup as David Beckham’s franchise won 1-0. He had only come onto the field to replace Benjamin Cremaschi 10 minutes into the second half.
One match, one goal for Inter Miami’s Leo Messi 🔥 🐐 🇺🇸pic.twitter.com/AL35ZOiOdy
— Football Transfers (@Transfersdotcom) July 22, 2023
Messi’s explosive start to life in the US only continued in his following match against Atlanta United. The Argentine went a long way to put the game to bed in 22 minutes as he scored twice in what proved a 4-0 win. A first assist for the club followed in the second half, and he was withdrawn with 12 minutes remaining.
Taylor ➡️ Messi for his second of the night to double the lead in the 22nd minute 👏#MIAvATL | 2-0 pic.twitter.com/bVvzkLJdDA
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) July 26, 2023
The goals kept coming in the last 32 of the Leagues Cup, with Messi incredibly making it five in three appearances thanks to a double against Orlando City. On both occasions, he made late runs into the box that went unchecked by his opponents and was picked out to finish from close range.
Lionel Messi at Inter Miami:
3 appearances
5 goals
1 assistCheat code.pic.twitter.com/UKrXNgil3D
— Football Transfers (@Transfersdotcom) August 3, 2023
In the last 16 of the Leagues Cup, Messi added a third brace in as many starts for his new club. He opened the scoring in a remarkable 4-4 draw with FC Dallas then helped send the match to penalty kicks thanks to a fine free-kick four minutes from time, just as it seemed his side were down and out. And, of course, he opened the penalty shootout by scoring.
Leo once again handed over penalty duties to Josef Martinez in the quarter-final to allow the Venezuelan to open the scoring against Charlotte FC. But that did not preclude him from extending his incredible run, as he struck late to make it 4-0 and score in his fifth consecutive match for Inter as they romped into the last four.
Messi does it again 🔥🔥
5 games straight✅
8 goals✅Campana to Messi for our fourth 👏#MIAvCLT | 4-0 pic.twitter.com/l7amAxwzrB
— Inter Miami CF (@InterMiamiCF) August 12, 2023
The Argentine’s scoring streak continued in the semi-finals as Inter Miami recorded a 4-1 win over the Philadelphia Union. Messi bagged his side’s second after 20 minutes as Tata Martino’s side booked a date with Nashville SC on 19 August.
Messi led Inter to Leagues Cup glory, scoring a stunning opener in that fixture. Fabrice Picault scored in reply, but the Miami side won out on 10-9 penalties as he won his first trophy after just seven appearances.
Inter Miami won their first-ever trophy last night.
Of course Messi scored a beauty. 🐐 pic.twitter.com/oYaF68OLzE
— Football Transfers (@Transfersdotcom) August 20, 2023
He was back at it the following midweek in the US Open Cup. The encounter with Cincinnati was the first he failed to score in, but his contribution was still profound as he produced two assists as the Storks came from two down to force extra-time. The teams shared a goal each in that additional period and Messi scored his penalty in the shootout as Inter Miami squeezed through.
Messi’s MLS debut had been slated to take place against Charlotte on 20 August but that game was postponed due to the clubs’ continued participation in the Leagues Cup, making the visit to New York Red Bulls on 26 August his bow in the competition. He came on for the final half hour and bagged the second goal in a 2-0 win.
Next up was a home encounter with Nashville, in which Inter Miami stretched their undefeated run to 11 games under the Argentine, but it finished without a goal.
There was success for Beckham’s franchise in their next encounter as they maintained their undefeated streak. They overcame LAFC 3-1 in the City of Angels, with Jordi Alba among the scorers from a Messi pass – one of two assists he managed.
Messi subsequently missed international duty with Argentina with an unspecified knock, and missed Inter’s 3-2 win over Sporting KC, with Leonardo Campana coming to the fore in that game with a brace.
His absence was sorely felt in the following meeting with Atlanta United, though. Messi scored two and assisted another as they beat them 4-0 in the Leagues Cup in July, but back in MLS, and without the Argentine, the 2018 champions won 5-2.
Although he returned for a 4-0 win over Toronto, the victory proved bittersweet as both he and Jordi Alba limped out of the match in the first half when the match was still scoreless.
Messi would go on to miss the next five matches for Inter Miami as they were eliminated from the MLS play-offs and knocked out of the US Open Cup, failing to win any of these fixtures, which included a thumping 4-1 loss to Chicago Fire.
Messi returned to action while on international duty and starred for Argentina, with Miami continuing to struggle, losing to Cincinnati and drawing with Charlotte.
Messi was back in action for Miami on October 21 away at Charlotte but could not improve results as his team lost 1-0.
After a brief break in which the Argentina World Cup winner picked up his record-extending eighth Ballon d’Or, Messi was back in action for a friendly with New York City to commemorate the win. His side lost 2-1, though, with Messi unable to impact the game.
Lionel Messi: Matches for Inter Miami in 2023
Cruz Azul 1-2 Inter Miami, 21 July – Leagues Cup
Minutes Played: 35
Goals: 1
Assists: 0
LIONEL ANDRÉS MESSI IS NOT HUMAN. pic.twitter.com/2mBDI41mLy
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) July 22, 2023
Inter Miami 4-0 Atlanta United, 25 July – Leagues Cup
Minutes Played: 78
Goals: 2
Assists: 1
Inter Miami 3-1 Orlando City, 2 August – Leagues Cup
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 2
Assists: 0
FC Dallas 4-4 Inter Miami (3-5 on penalties), 6 August – Leagues Cup
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 2
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 4-0 Charlotte FC, 11 August – Leagues Cup
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 1
Assists: 0
Philadelphia Union 1-4 Inter Miami, 15 August – Leagues Cup
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 1
Assists: 0
Nashville SC 1-1 Inter Miami, 19 August – Leagues Cup
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 1
Assists: 0
Cincinnati 3-3 Inter Miami (4-5 pens), 23 August – U.S. Open Cup
Minutes Played: 120
Goals: 0
Assists: 2
New York Red Bulls 0-2 Inter Miami, 26 August – MLS
Minutes Played: 30
Goals: 1
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 0-0 Nashville, 30 August – MLS
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
LAFC 1-3 Inter Miami, 3 September – MLS
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 0
Assists: 2
Inter Miami 3-2 Sporting KC, 9 September – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Atlanta United 5-2 Inter Miami, 16 September – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 4-0 Toronto, 20 September – MLS
Minutes Played: 39
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Orlando City 1-1 Inter Miami, 24 September – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 1-2 Houston Dynamo, 27 September – US Open Cup
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 1-1 New York City, 30 September – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Chicago 4-1 Inter Miami, 4 October – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 0-1 Cincinnati, 7 October – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Inter Miami 2-2 Charlotte, 18 October – MLS
Minutes Played: 0
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Charlotte 1-0 Inter Miami, 21 October – MLS
Minutes Played: 90
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Lionel Messi 2022-23 stats
Lionel Messi at PSG: Goals, assists, results & fixtures in 2022-23
Messi’s second season with PSG was more impressive than his first.
It is a campaign that will mainly be remembered for Messi leading Argentina to World Cup glory in Qatar at international level, culminating in a thrilling final victory against previous winners France.
But it was also a productive club season for the attacker, who still had impressive numbers at the age of 35.
Messi scored 21 goals and added 20 assists for PSG in the 41 matches that he played across all competitions.
In Ligue 1 specifically, he had 16 goals and 16 assists in 32 appearances, averaging exactly one goal involvement for every game played.
No player in Europe’s top-five leagues bettered his total of 16 top-flight assists and it ended up as his best creative season since 2019/20, when he racked up 20 goals created for Barcelona in La Liga.
Messi won Ligue 1 for the second time in as many years and he also scored as Trophée des Champions glory was secured with a thumping win over Nantes in July.
That teed up a flying start to the league season that saw Messi produce seven assists in seven Ligue 1 games.
Among his best league performances, Messi netted once and set up two goals for KylIan Mbappe in a 3-0 away win over Ajaccio on October 21, with the pair showing some incredible link-up play. He then scored once and got another assist in a dramatic 4-3 win over Troyes next time out.
Messi scored in five straight Ligue 1 matches between February 1 and March 4, though his first appearance of the season – a 5-0 win for PSG at Clermont – was the only time he scored more than once in a league game across the campaign.
He created two goals for Mbappe, as well as scoring himself, in a key Ligue 1 win against rivals Marseille on February 26, as his side recorded a 3-0 victory.
But there was no Champions League glory once more for PSG, who suffered a disappointing 3-0 aggregate defeat to Bayern Munich in the first knockout round, with Messi playing in both legs.
PSG had finished second in a group that also contained Benfica, Juventus and Maccabi Haifa, with Messi racking up four goals and four assists in the competition.
The Coupe de France also ended in disappointment, with Marseille beating PSG 2-1 in the last 16.
Lionel Messi 2021-22 stats
Lionel Messi at PSG: Goals, assists, results & fixtures in 2021-22
It was a mixed first season at PSG for Messi, who produced some magical moments and won the league but still fell short of his ultimate aims.
Messi made 34 appearances for the French champions in all competitions, 32 of which were starts. He only scored 11 goals across those games, though he did add an impressive 14 assists.
In Ligue 1 specifically, Messi scored just eight times from 26 outings.
Messi made his PSG debut as a second-half substitute against Reims on August 29, 2021, and it was a quiet beginning as his new team eased to a 2-0 win.
The forward was then handed his first PSG start in the Champions League trip to Brugge on September 15, his side suffering frustration in a disappointing 1-1 draw where he did not score.
Messi struggled in his opening weeks as a PSG player and it took almost a month after his debut for him to score his first goal.
The star finally came to life on the biggest of stages when he played a vital role in beating Manchester City and his former coach Pep Guardiola in the Champions League, with a remarkable strike in a 2-0 victory.
It took until November 20 for Messi to finally claim his all-important first goal in Ligue 1 for PSG with a tremendous strike late on in a 3-1 home victory over Nantes.
The biggest disappointment of the season for Messi and his team-mates arrived on March 9 as they were eliminated from the Champions League.
Despite being 2-0 up on aggregate after Mbappe’s second goal in the last-16 tie against Real Madrid, PSG crumbled in the last half-hour to lose 3-1 on the night and 3-2 on aggregate.
Messi was subsequently booed throughout his next game as PSG fans took out their frustration of this exit on both the Argentine and Neymar. They won the game 3-0 against Bordeaux.
PSG claimed the Ligue 1 title after a 1-1 draw versus Lens on April 23, and it was a goal from Messi that ultimately clinched the championship.
It was one of the goals of the season, too, with a long-range strike being whipped high into the top left corner, but PSG fans would have hoped to have seen many more of those moments.
Lionel Messi 2020-21 stats
What proved to be Messi’s final season at Barcelona ended with him winning one trophy, the Copa del Rey.
Messi scored twice in a 4-0 win over Athletic Bilbao in the final, but it was Atletico Madrid and his former team-mate Luis Suarez who triumphed over Real Madrid and Barca in La Liga.
In the Champions League, Messi’s future employers PSG ended Barca’s hopes in the last-16 stage with a 5-2 aggregate victory.
The Argentina forward scored in both legs, including a stunning goal in Paris, but also missed a penalty in that second leg. Kylian Mbappe netted a famous hat-trick in the Camp Nou game.
Individually, Messi topped the scoring charts in Spain with 30 goals and struck 38 times from 47 appearances in total across all competitions.
That was seven more goals than he had managed in 2019/20, though still short of the peak numbers he had previously produced at Camp Nou.
Source From: Football Transfer News Archive including Premier League & La Liga
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