5 Amazing Stats That Show Messi’s Dominance of Nashville SC

Lionel Messi is always the exception to the rule. And unfortunately for fans of Nashville SC, that theorem is doubly true whenever the living legend leads Inter Miami CF against the team from Central Tennessee.

With his brace for the Herons in Saturday night’s 4-0 win over the Coyotes in Game 3 of their Round One series in the MLS Cup Playoffs, Messi now has 15 career goals against Nashville since he joined Miami in the summer of 2023. That’s an astounding eight more than he has scored against any other MLS opponent during his two-and-a-half seasons as an MLS player.

But that’s only the start of a truly astonishing record of domination of another MLS opponent. Here are five stats that show just how deep the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner’s domination of this particular opponent really goes.

2.20

Goal involvements per 90 minutes vs. Nashville

With 15 goals and six assists (using the MLS secondary assist standard), Messi has 21 total goal involvements in 860 total minutes against Nashville SC, good for 2.20 per 90.

That’s nearly half-a-goal-involvement higher than his already extraordinary rate from his MLS Golden Boot-winning campaign in 2025, as well as his overall MLS regular season career. Though it’s actually in line with the matches he was healthy for during his MVP-winning 2024 campaign.

20%

Share of career Miami goals scored against Nashville

Sam Navarrio | Imagn Images

Between the MLS regular season and playoffs, the Concacaf Champions Cup, the Leagues Cup, U.S. Open Cup and FIFA Club World Cup, Messi has now scored 75 total goals for Miami in 85 appearances across all competitions, according to data from MLSsoccer.com and FBref.com.

And one out of every five of those goals has come against Nashville. To be fair, Miami has played Nashville more than just about any other opponent. But games against the Coyotes represent about 11.8% of his total appearances in the Pink and Black, well shy of his share of goals scored.

+5

Messi vs. Nashville SC goal differential

In his 860 minutes of match action against Nashville, Messi has singlehandedly outscored his opponents by five goals.

That comes out to a positive margin of about 0.52 goals per 90 minutes. If that rate continued over 3,060 minutes — the amount a team plays in an MLS regular season — Messi would have a goal differential over Nashville of about +18.

How good is that? Only five MLS teams posted better goal differentials this season: The Vancouver Whitecaps (+28) Miami (+26), Los Angeles FC (+25), San Diego FC (+23) and the Philadelphia Union (+22).

3

Players with more career multi-goal playoff games than Messi has vs. Nashville

With two goals in Game 1 and two goals in Game 3 against Nashville, Messi became the 20th player in MLS history to record at least two multi-goal playoff performances in their entire careers.

Only three have accomplished the feat more than twice.

If Messi remains healthy through the length of his recent contract extension — no certainty given he’ll be 41 by its end — he’ll probably become the leader in this category. He already posted the all-time record for MLS multi-goal performances in a regular season with 10 in 2024.

1

Active players with more MLS regular season and playoff goals against 1 team

Of Messi’s 15 goals against Nashville, 12 have come in MLS regular season and playoff competition. Per MLS communications staff, only one active MLS player has more against a single opponent in their entire career. That’s Kei Kamara, the league’s second all-time leading goalscorer. At 41 years old, he has 13 goals against both CF Montreal and the Chicago Fire FC.

Messi would have to score 14 more such times to set the record in this category, owned by DC United legend Jaime Moreno, who scored 26 times in regular season and playoff play against the NY Red Bulls.