In Argentina’s match against Peru, Messi made a beautiful assist for striker Lautaro Martinez to score the only goal of the match. This assist helped the 37-year-old become the best assist provider of all time at the national team level with a total of 59 assists.
He officially surpassed the record of Landon Donovan (USA) with 58 assists and Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) with 42 assists. The next players on the list are Thierry Henry (France) with 41 assists, David Beckham (England) with 40 assists and Sergio Aguero (Argentina) with 38 assists.
This achievement and 2 more championship titles including Copa America and MLS Supporters’ Shield (American professional soccer tournament), helped Messi have a quite complete year of competition. In addition, the Argentina team topped the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in South America and continued to hold the No. 1 position on the FIFA rankings.
The only disappointment for Messi in 2024 was the failure to win the MLS Cup. The early elimination from the MLS Cup in the first round forced the star player and Inter Miami to end the season earlier than expected. However, this gave him and his teammates a longer break than they wanted.
Accordingly, Messi and Inter Miami will not return to play in the new season until February 2025. The 2025 MLS season will begin on February 22, 2025. Inter Miami will not have an international tour like in early 2024. They are scheduled to play a friendly match with Orlando City Club on February 14 in the US. Apart from this match, there are currently no other training matches officially scheduled.
There are rumors that Messi will play for another club in Europe on a short-term loan. However, according to ESPN Argentina, Messi is committed to playing for Inter Miami as the last club in his career. The famous player’s contract with the American team still has a term until the end of 2025 with an option to extend the following year.
“There is no possibility of Messi going to Europe or returning to his childhood club Newell’s Old Boys even after his contract expires at the end of 2025,” ESPN Argentina stressed. “Instead, Messi will take advantage of the time to rest and recover, returning to play for Inter Miami in the new season and the Argentina national team in the 2026 World Cup qualifying schedule in March 2025,” according to ESPN Argentina.
In 2024, Messi scored 20 goals and had 10 assists in 19 MLS games for Inter Miami. But he also missed 15 games due to injury and playing in the Copa America. The famous player is determined to play more to help Inter Miami achieve their dream of winning the 2025 MLS Cup.
In addition to this title, in 2025 Inter Miami will also compete in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, Leagues Cup and Club World Cup.
