The Japan Times - Messi reaches 936 career goals after Inter Miami brace

Lionel Messi took his career scoring total to 936 with a quick brace in Inter Miami’s 3-1 Major League Soccer victory over Atlanta United.

Lionel Messi scored twice within a space of four minutes as Inter Miami crushed Atlanta United 3-1 in match of Major League Soccer (MLS). The Argentine, who retired from international football against Benin earlier this month in front of his home crowd, also provided a first-half assist on Sunday in an Eastern Conference-fixture at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium.Neither team had scored until Germán Berterame used assists from Messi and Luis Suárez in the final minute of the first half to score his ninth goal in his first 26 MLS appearances. Messi noted his league-leading 24th and 25th goals in the 56th and 60th minutes to make it 3-0 for Inter Miami.The Mexican Berterame assisted on both scores and Suárez snagged one on Messi' second goal.

With his assist, Messi also became the first player in MLS history with at least 15 assists in three consecutive seasons. The win also helped Inter Miami to consolidate their position in the MLS standings.With 55 points in 30 games, Inter Miami are placed second in the MLS 2026 points table, just five points shy of table-toppers Nashville SC. For Atlanta United, they are at 14th, just six points clear of CF Montreal.How far is Messi from Cristiano Ronaldo?The two goals against Atlanta United were Messi's 935th and 936th in his career.

The 39-year-old, who lost his father in August this year, is just 64 goals from reaching the 1000-goal mark. But Messi has his age-old rival Cristiano Ronaldo, who might reach the coveted mark first.The Portuguese talisman, who recently got into a controversy with the national team, plays for Saudi Pro League club Al Nassr, is sitting at 981 career goals and is just 19 strikes away from the thousand mark. Ronaldo scored his 981st career goal during Al Nassr's 3-1 victory over Uzbekistan's FC Neftchi in the AFC Champions League Elite group stage.Both Ronaldo and Messi have captivated the world whilst wearing the shirts of Real Madrid and Barcelona.

It was their time in La Liga, that refined the standards of European football and enabled the duo to claim 13 of the last 20 Ballon d'Or awards. While Ronaldo got crowned five times, Messi won the Ballon d'Or on eight occasions.Messi vs Ronaldo all-time career statsMore records for Lionel Messi With his brace, Messi tied Los Angeles FC's Son Heung-min for the league lead with his 15th assist. Messi won the Golden Boot Award last season with 29 goals.

He and Josef Martínez are the only players in league history to score at least 25 times in a regular season twice. Messi's 40 goal contributions are nine shy of Carlos Vela's record set in 2019 with Los Angeles FC, and the Miami legend has four matches remaining to break it.

S.Fujimoto--JT