Messi assisted by a savior! 2 goals and 2 assists reverse 4-1, the 38-year-old football king shows back to show the king again

On the morning of July 6, the Major League of American Football (MLS) ushered in a focus battle that attracted much attention. Miami International challenged Montreal's impact away. Miami International, which just stopped at the top 16 in the Club World Cup, is now carrying the expectations and pressure of fans. Although it failed to achieve the championship goal in the Club World Cup, the team's overall performance has far exceeded expectations. After all, this is the first time that Miami International has participated in the event. In this game, Messi undoubtedly became the focus again - just 2 minutes into the game, Messi gave an "all-round assist" due to a mistake, causing the team to fall behind for a while. But the subsequent plot surprised everyone: 38-year-old Messi showed firepower like a peak moment! He contributed 2 goals and 2 assists alone to help the team complete a big reversal 4-1. This scene is like a classic scene in the movie, but it does happen on the MLS field. After the game, the fans responded enthusiastically and reposted comments: "Messi is still that Messi! He can still ride alone at the age of 38!"

Own changed momentum: Messi's gorgeous counterattack after the mistake

The game started with a jaw-dropping scene on the court less than two minutes later. Miami International launched an attack in the backcourt, and Messi was preparing to pass shortly to his teammate Allende near the center circle, but the pass was too light and was directly intercepted by Ou, who was hit by Montreal. Aowu scored into the empty goal, 1-0! At this time, the camera swept over Messi's face, and the Argentine football king showed a rare embarrassing smile, as if saying: "Oh my God, such an own-and-answer assist is really outrageous!" You know, Messi's passing accuracy has always been as high as more than 90% in his career, and such low-level mistakes are rare. Post-match data showed that this pass mistake directly led to an unfavorable situation at Miami International's start, but for Messi, this was just an introduction, and he quickly got back to his form.

Sure enough, in the 33rd minute, Messi ushered in his great redemption moment. He cleverly responded in the frontcourt and immediately gave Allende a subtle assist. Allende calmly pushed the ball and scored, and the score became 1-1! This also became Messi's first assist in this game. According to statistics, Messi's average key passes per game in MLS this season has reached 1.5 times, and this assist fully demonstrates Messi's precise scheduling ability as the "brain" - a seemingly simple pass on the surface, but in fact, it perfectly controls the rhythm of the game. Just 7 minutes later, the game reached its climax: in the 40th minute, Messi received a straight pass from Suarez and launched a counterattack, quickly dribbled the ball into the penalty area. Despite the three defensive players' double-teams, Messi still responded calmly, cleverly changed direction and shook the opponent away, and then broke Montreal's defense with a low shot on the left, 2-1! This goal instantly ignited social media, and fans exclaimed: "At 38 years old, he can still be so flexible! Messi's legs are like a perpetual motion machine!" According to real data, Messi's maximum speed in a single game reaches 29 km/h, and his age does not affect his explosiveness. In the second half, Miami International entered full performance time. In the 60th minute, Segovia seized the opportunity to counterattack and scored with a precise arc ball outside the penalty area. The ball was directly on the inside of the crossbar and entered the net, expanding the lead 3-1 (although this goal was not an assist from Messi, it was also the result of team cooperation). Just two minutes later, Messi performed a solo show again: after receiving the ball in the midfield, Messi threw away two defensive players with his personal ability, and then completed a beautiful outing when he was blocked. Finally, he pushed the ball with his left foot and scored, locking the victory 4-1! This wonderful moment also made the commentator excitedly say: "This is not just a game, it is Messi's personal show!" After the end of this game, Messi not only contributed 2 goals and 2 assists (including an own assist), but his long-distance run in the 62nd minute was really shocking.

38-year-old King still: Analysis of the whole play from mistakes to deciding

Messi's performance in this game is undoubtedly worth analyzing from multiple angles. Let’s look at the data first: Messi shot 4 times in this game, 3 shots on the right track (the goal rate reaches 100%), contributed 4 key passes (2 assists), touched the ball 75 times in the game, and successfully broke through 5 times (including four consecutive players in the 62nd minute). These numbers are not monotonous, they show Messi's overall dominance. In terms of age, Messi is 38 years old (born in June 1987). Compared with players such as Ronaldo of the same age, Messi's performance in MLS still maintains a very high level of competitive performance. The post-match analysis of the official website of the MEF pointed out that Messi averaged 1.8 goals directly involved in the game, which was far higher than the league average (0.7 times). What is even more admirable is Messi's mentality: after the opening-end mistake, he completed the double return of goals and assists in just 31 minutes, which reflects his extraordinary adaptability. The fans at the scene held up a slogan: "Messi will never grow old, the legend will last forever!" This is not an empty praise, but a respect and admiration based on Messi's actual performance. During the game, Messi made several simple and efficient breakthroughs, showing his profound skills in his 20-year career - such as the direction-changing breakthrough in the penalty area in the 40th minute. Although he did not have fancy skills, he directly hit the weak points of the opponent's defense line.

Although Miami International failed to achieve its wish in the Club World Cup, this has become their motivation to be more resilient. During the Club World Cup, the team stopped in the quarterfinals (lost to the Asian champion), but for a new army, being able to defeat multiple strong enemies was already beyond expectations. After this victory, Miami International has won three consecutive victories in the MLS season, jumping to second in the Eastern Conference in the standings, only 2 points behind the top. According to data, there are 12 rounds left in the MLS regular season this season, Miami International averages 2.2 goals per game, ranking third in the league (data comes from the official website of MLS). Messi's joining not only boosted the team's morale, but also drove the audience's box office growth - the number of spectators in the last round of home games set a new record of 70,000! The future goal has been clear: strive to win the playoffs and prepare for the 2025 World Cup (from the player's personal perspective). Messi's ambition is still to replicate the miracle of the 2022 Qatar World Cup - to help Argentina defend its title. And this dream is not out of reach: FIFA statistics show that Messi has won the World Cup MVP twice, and even Maradona has not achieved it. But the "age issue" that fans are most worried about is completely broken in this game.

Looking forward: From MLS champion to World Cup defense dream

With the arrival of victory, Miami International's winning streak also appears to be particularly strong. In the next game, the team will face strong teams such as New York Red Bull. If they can continue their current state, they are likely to directly reach the top of the Eastern Conference (there is only 2 points away at the moment). Messi is also expected to continue to refresh his personal data - he has scored 12 goals and contributed 9 assists this season, firmly ranking first in the MLS scoring list. After the game, the team coach said at a press conference: "Messi's return is like adding a buff to the team, and his teammates also took off." This is not an exaggeration: Suarez's direct pass assist in this game reflects the improvement of the chemistry of Miami International team. For Argentina fans, the 2026 World Cup is their final expectation. According to FIFA rankings, Argentina is currently ranked first in the world, and if Messi can maintain a good physical condition (scientific training data shows that his body fat rate remains at 8%), it is not impossible to defend the title. Perhaps, a historic moment will be born in the US next year.

This game is not just a simple victory, but also a declaration of "return of the king". Messi used his 38-year-old legs to prove that time cannot take away the soul of the king of football. Fans, what do you think? Can Messi still score a hat trick in the 2026 World Cup and help Argentina defend its title? How brilliant will his MLS journey be? Welcome to share your views in the comment section: Messi's legendary moment is worthy of