Lionel Messi scores twice in first game since Argentina retirement, Inter Miami beats DC United
Lionel Messi scored two goals in his first match following his retirement from the Argentine national team, leading Inter Miami to a 4-0 victory over D.C. United. Luis Suárez also contributed two goals in the win, which ended a five-match winless streak for the team.
Why it matters
Messi's continued performance in Major League Soccer remains a major driver of interest and commercial growth for the sport in the United States.
Lionel Messi scored two goals to give him a league-leading 23 this season, and Inter Miami beat D.C. United 4-0.
Luis Suárez also scored twice and Germán Berterame had two assists for Inter Miami, which snapped a five-match winless skid. Miami had four draws and one loss before Saturday's outburst.
Four days after playing his farewell match that ended a 21-year tenure with the Argentine national team, Messi played the entire 90 minutes.
The win was Miami's first since a 7-1 rout of CF Montreal on Aug. 29. It was also the first league win for new coach Cristian “Kily” González, who took over Sept. 16.
D.C. United is winless in its last five matches.
Also covering this story
One other newsroom covered this event. We read that version too.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in