Lionel Messi continued to make historical past Saturday, extending his MLS-record streak of multigoal video games as he scored twice in Inter Miami‘s 2-1 win over Nashville SC.
Messi claimed the record last week when he turned the primary participant in MLS historical past to attain a number of targets in 4 straight league video games.
And he took that streak to 5 Saturday, with a objective in every half to assist Miami to a fifth consecutive MLS victory. Miami moved to fifth within the Supporters’ Protect standings because it goals to win the title for the second straight season.
Messi can be tied with Nashville’s Sam Surridge for the MLS objective lead this season with 16 targets in simply 16 video games.
The Argentina nice opened the scoring in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with a superbly positioned free kick within the seventeenth minute. Messi beat the Nashville wall and goalkeeper Joe Willis with a low left-footed shot that discovered the underside nook of the web.
It was Messi’s 69th objective from a direct free kick and his sixth with Miami. It additionally gave him a objective in a sixth straight MLS sport, one behind his finest such streak in MLS set final yr.
His record-extending second objective got here within the 62nd minute. Messi intercepted an errant go from Willis then nonchalantly took the ball across the Nashville keeper earlier than coolly depositing it into the web.
It is the primary time Messi has had 5 straight multigoal league video games since a run of six with Barcelona in LaLiga in 2012.
In between Messi’s strikes, Hany Mukhtar scored off a pleasant cross from Andy Nájar to stage the rating for Nashville, which had received 5 straight coming into the match.
Nashville jumped to 3rd within the Supporters’ Protect standings throughout its unbeaten streak that went again to mid-April throughout all competitions. It was additionally the longest energetic unbeaten streak in MLS and Nashville’s finest stretch in its six-season membership historical past.
Miami closed the hole on Japanese Convention leaders Philadelphia Union and FC Cincinnati to 5 factors, whereas nonetheless having three video games left due to its participation within the FIFA Membership World Cup.
Data from The Related Press and ESPN Analysis contributed to this report.