TORONTO — After going winless in 12 consecutive MLS matches, Toronto FC has shown some genuine signs of life over the course of its last two outings.  

Last weekend’s win over the New England Revolution (the club’s first since April) was followed up by a wild game on Wednesday in which TFC came from two goals down in the second half to earn a draw against Charlotte FC while only playing with 10 men. 

Those results helped TFC (4-7-9) move up to 11th in the Eastern Conference, two spots and three points below the playoff line with 14 matches remaining in the regular season. But much tougher challenges are ahead for the Reds, specifically Saturday night’s road game vs. Lionel Messi and Inter Miami. 

Messi is having another MVP-type campaign in 2026 with 13 goals and nine assists in 17 appearances, helping Miami, the defending MLS Cup champions, to climb up to second place in the overall league table – 22 places and 18 points above Toronto. 

The Argentinian superstar seems to have enjoyed playing against TFC since he entered the league in 2023, scoring three goals and tallying a pair of assists in five contests against the Canadian club. Back in May at BMO Field, Messi ran rampant in scoring one goal and setting up two others to propel Miami to a comfortable 4-2 win over Toronto. 

Now TFC have to deal once again with Messi, who scored and registered an assist in a 2-2 road draw vs. the Philadelphia Union on Wednesday.  

“[Their] stadium’s gonna be full again, stars on the other team; these are the reasons we all wanted to be soccer players, to have these moments. It’s gonna be very difficult to get a result but the........

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