Lionel Messi’s GOAT status in question after historic loss to Atlanta United
It was all lining up to be a season of perfection for Lionel Messi and Inter Miami. This season was supposed to be the final feather in Messi’s GOAT cap, and heading into the first round of the MLS Cup playoffs, it couldn’t have been more storybook. Messi and Inter Miami dominated all season. Inter Miami won the Supporters’ Shield for the first time in the club’s history. And they didn’t just win the shield; they set the record for most points in a season by any MLS team with a total of 74, breaking the previous record set by the New England Revolution in 2021. And to put the cherry on top of their record-breaking season, Inter Miami was controversially awarded the final spot in FIFA’s 2025 Club World Cup. Messi was riding an all-time high, reminiscent of his Barcelona days.
But Atlanta United had other plans. They snuck into the MLS Cup playoffs by winning their wildcard matchup as the No. 9 seed, which meant Atlanta United had to face the greatest regular-season MLS team of all time. They lost the first match in the best-of-three series but tied up the series with a home win Nov. 2. Everything came down to Game 3 in Miami, and it was by far the best game of the series. Both teams scored early, and superstar Messi even found the back of the net to tie it at 2-2. But Atlanta United would have the last laugh as Bartosz Slisz scored a 76th-minute header to give Atlanta United the lead once and for all. They would hold on to their one-goal advantage for the rest of the match, securing the historic upset and sending the GOAT and the GOAT regular-season team home in the first round.
This loss is a terrible look for Messi, and it should not be sugarcoated. He has now spent two seasons playing in America and has nothing but disappointment to show for it. Last year was his first season, and Inter Miami was a bottom feeder, one of the worst teams in MLS even with Messi arriving midseason. And now this year, they wanted to bring the glory days of Barcelona to Miami. Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, as well as former Barcelona coach Martino, all joined the team heading into this season. All this football royalty in one locker room just to crash out and lose to an Atlanta United team, who, in all honesty, were just happy to even qualify for the playoffs. The greatest regular-season team in MLS history might have just had the greatest upset in MLS Cup history. If Messi is the soccer GOAT, the greatest player of all time, then there is absolutely no excuse for this loss.
Messi dominated his age-37 season. He only appeared in 19 games due to injuries and international duty, but he still scored 20 goals. Albeit, it was in MLS, where there is a good possibility that he is still the best soccer player in America. He turns 38 next year, and it is also the final year of his MLS deal. Messi has won titles at every location he’s played. It would be an awful look that against the worst competition of his life, even in his advanced age, he could not even pull off one MLS playoff win. Those are the kinds of failures that make someone rethink the entire GOAT debate. The kind of failure Cristiano Ronaldo fans are eager to see so they can bring him back into GOAT debates.
This playoff upset to Atlanta United was bad, very bad. But it’s not enough to remove Messi as the greatest ever, yet. If Messi fails like this again in the next playoffs, the GOAT conversation will have to be opened up again.
