Lionel Messi is on the longest run of clean health of his MLS career, and the results have been absolutely devastating for his league opponents.
Messi scored both of Inter Miami's first-half goals to lead the Herons to a 2-1 victory over the New England Revolution on Wednesday night, bringing his season total to 14 and continuing an unreal stretch of scoring in MLS play.
Messi has now bagged a brace in four consecutive MLS games, making him the league's first-ever player to string four multi-goal performances together. That purple patch has seen the world's greatest living player skyrocket into second place in the MLS Golden Boot race behind only Nashville SC's Sam Surridge, who has 16 league goals heading into the weekend.
And maybe even more telling, the 38-year-old Messi has now made 16 consecutive appearances without an injury- or fatigue-related absence in all competitions for club and country.
It's a little reminiscent of his introduction to Miami, he scored 10 goals in his first seven appearances (six starts) to take the 2023 Leagues Cup by storm and lead the Heron to their third major trophy.
Play who's on the schedule
If there's any minor caveat to his recent hot run (and it's indeed minor), it's that he has mostly done it against struggling Eastern Conference opposition. Two of his braces came against last-place CF Montreal. And New England is in 11th place, four points beneath the playoff line.
But no matter. The win still took the Herons above Orlando into fifth place in the Eastern Conference, and within seven points of Supporters' Shield leaders FC Cincinnati.
Miami currently has three matches in hand on Cincinnati, as a result of games rescheduled to allow for participation in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.
Messi and Miami will step up in class with their next opponent when they host second-place Nashville SC on Saturday night. The Coyotes were also in action Wednesday, romping to a 5-2 win over D.C. United in a home U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal.