Lionel Messi stars in Inter Miami win: How many goals has Messi scored?

Another day, another starring performance from Lionel Messi. The Inter Miami captain maintained his own exceptional start to the 2026 season with two goals and an assist in a 5-3 win over FC Cincinnati.

Miami came into the game on poor run of one win in their last three outings and faced a Cincinnati team who are resolute on home turf. The reigning MLS Cup champions took the lead at TQL Stadium but goals from Kevin Denkey and Pavel Bucha tipped the game in Cincy’s favor. But from then on Messi simply took control of the game, scoring his second goal of the night and playing key roles in the other three.

Messi ended the game with two goals and an assist, proving once again that he is worth every cent of his newly-released salary. Miami move to within two points of Nashville SC at the top of the Eastern Conference standings.

Wednesday’s brace takes Lionel Messi to 907 goals in his illustrious career, behind only Cristiano Ronaldo (971) in the all-time standings. However Messi’s minutes-per-goal record (104) across his career is slightly better than that of CR7 (111).

Next up for Inter Miami are two home games against Portland Timbers and Philadelphia Union before the league breaks for the 2026 World Cup. Both the Timbers and the Union are struggling in their respective conferences, giving Miami a good chance of picking up a first victory in their newly-opened Nu Stadium.

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