Messi at it again! Leo scores twice in Inter Miami's 4-0 win over Atlanta

Lionel Messis followup performance Tuesday night against Atlanta United in the Leagues Cup showed the impact that the right player can have on an entire clubMessi scored twice and had an assist in his first start for Miami bringing his total to three goals in two games Inter Miami had a 30 lead by halftime the first such lead in club historyTheres going to be a before and after Messi in football for this country Mas saidMiami went on to win 40 Messi exited in the 78th minute to a standing ovation with many in the crowd wearing his No 10 jersey Many also headed for the exits themselves once Messi was on the benchWith the type of player that he is its justified that this happens Miami coach Tata Martino saidAlso Read Lionel Messi partakes in first training session since signing with Inter Miami WatchI would have preferred that the public stayed and pay tribute to the entire team but I can also understand itMiami swept its group and moved on to the round of 32 in the Leagues Cup in which it will host a tobedetermined opponentIn the eighth minute Messi took a pass from his longtime Barcelona teammate Sergio Busquets surged forward and sent a strike off the right post before tapping in his own rebound Then in the 22nd minute Messi put Miami ahead 20 off a pass from Robert TaylorSince those two have gotten here the spirit has changed Miamis DeAndre Yedlin said referring to Messi and BusquetsObviously guys are really excited But I think just their presence gives everybody more confidence And I think also the teams that were playing against now have a bit of fear in their eyes When those two are on the field you know youre in for a tough gameMessi came off the bench in the 54th minute Friday night in Miamis first Leagues Cup match against Mexican club Cruz Azul And he provided a moment fans had hoped for when the seventime Ballon dOr winner and World Cup champion for Argentina decided to take his talents to MLS Messi converted the gamewinning free kick in stoppage time in front of a crowd estimated at 21000Yedlin had placed the skippers armband on Messi when he checked in on Friday but Messi entered Tuesdays match wearing the armband just below his right shoulderHes my teammate now Hes our teammate Yedlin said Hes part of this team and he wants to win like everybody else And hes been a joy to be around obviously not just on the field Hes obviously an amazing talent but off the field he really helps a lot of the younger guys even older guys like myselfBrazilian midfielder Gregore had been the clubs captain before suffering a foot injury in MarchWith Messi rightly commanding much of the attention from Atlantas defenders opportunities opened for other Miami players Taylor scored in the 44th minute then made it 40 in the 53rd after being set up by MessiTheres times when the coach prepares a certain game in a certain way but these two players are so good at what they do that they create spaceiquest Martino said about Messi and BusquetsGoalkeeper Drake Callender preserved the shutout when he stopped a penalty shot by Thiago Almada in the 86th minuteThere are things that of course after review of the game that we can do way better Atlanta coach Gonzalo Pineda saidI think we also had some chances to score We couldnt capitalizeMessi had entered holding hands with the son of hiphop artist DJ KhaledA fan got onto the field as Messi was exiting The fan sprinted all the way toward Miamis bench where Messi stood before Martino grabbed the attention of security The fan was then escorted off the field