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Messi Makes MLS History as Inter Miami Scores Four Against Toronto

Lionel Messi led Inter Miami to a resounding 4-0 victory over Toronto FC on Saturday, bouncing back from their loss to Orlando and setting a new MLS record.

·May 9, 2026·via ESPN
Messi Makes MLS History as Inter Miami Scores Four Against Toronto

Lionel Messi broke an MLS record and inspired Inter Miami to a 4-2 win over Toronto FC on Saturday as the visitors bounced back from their Orlando City defeat in style.

Messi had a goal and two assists in the game as Miami stormed into a four-goal lead before two late consolation strikes. It means he is the fastest player in MLS history to reach 100 goal contributions with 59 goals and 41 assists in 64 regular-season matches, shattering the previous record of 95 set by Toronto's Sebastian Giovinco.

Though Miami was beaten 4-3 at home by Orlando City last week in a match it led 3-0, the winning streak on the road is now six.

Rodrigo De Paul also had a goal and two assists, scoring a free kick in the 44th minute to give Inter Miami a 1-0 lead. The midfielder corralled the ball after it ricocheted off the wall of players and banged a second shot off the left post and into the net.

Messi usually takes all of the club's direct free kicks but he yielded to De Paul, who delivered his third career goal -- all this year -- in his 21st appearance over two seasons.

Lionel Messi picks up two assists and a goal as Inter Miami takes down Toronto FC on the road.

Messi and De Paul both picked up their third assists of the campaign when they set up Luis Suárez for his second goal and a 2-0 lead in the 56th minute. It was the 32nd goal in 63 career matches for Suárez.

Defender Sergio Reguilón made his third appearance when he subbed into the match in the 68th minute before scoring his first goal in the 73rd -- with an assist from Messi -- for a three-goal lead.

De Paul set up Messi for his ninth goal -- one off the league lead -- in the 75th minute to make it 4-0. De Paul has three assists after collecting his first four in 11 appearances last season.

Toronto avoided the shutout on a pair of goals by rookie Emilio Aristizábal . The 20-year-old scored in the 82nd and 90th minutes, giving him three goals in his first 11 matches. Dániel Sallói had his fourth assist on the first goal. Kobe Franklin snagged his second assist this season and fellow defender Walker Zimmerman earned his first to help Aristizábal complete the brace.

Dayne St. Clair finished with three saves for Inter Miami (6-2-4), and Luka Gavran stopped two shots for Toronto (3-4-5).

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

_Originally reported by [ESPN](https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/48723363/lionel-messi-luis-suarez-stars-inter-miami-bounce-back-4-goal-toronto-win)._

Source Attribution

This story is summarized from coverage by ESPN.

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