Sometimes the best thing after a disappointing result is to hit the pitch as soon as possible, and a midweek matchup arrives at a good time for Atlanta. Saturday evening, Atlanta United suffered a tough loss at home to rival Nashville SC. The team looked lethargic, and interim head coach Rob Valentino called the performance "uninspiring." It was surprising, given the amount of time Atlanta had to prepare and what the team showed in their two matches prior. Coming out of the Leagues Cup break, Atlanta traveled to the West Coast and kept up with the first-place team in the Western Conference for about 60 minutes until L.A. Galaxy scored two goals. Atlanta followed up that match with a strong win on the road at Bank of America Stadium, shutting out regional rival Charlotte FC. That's more on par with what Atlanta United will be looking to replicate Wednesday night. The last time these two teams met at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in MLS play was in 2023. Atlanta won big with an impressive 5-2 scoreline that ended Miami's 12-match unbeaten streak. This season, Atlanta United and Inter Miami CF previously faced off on May 29. The 5-Stripes traveled to Chase Stadium to take on the leaders of the Eastern Conference. Atlanta United won that contest 3-1 on the road. Saba Lobjanidze scored his first career MLS brace and was voted MLS Player of the Matchday. Lionel Messi played in that May match, and Atlanta United contained the world-class star for 62 minutes. He then scored on a left-footed, low-driven strike past a diving Josh Cohen, pulling one goal back for Miami. But that was all Miami got. Jamal Thiaré finished off a team goal to secure the three points for Atlanta. Alexey Miranchuk (Atlanta United) - The designated player saw his first minutes at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday when Atlanta United faced Nashville SC. It wasn't the home debut the attacking midfielder was looking for as the team struggled to find any speed or rhythm throughout the night. With Atlanta scoring just one goal in the club's most recent three matches, look for Miranchuk to prove his quality and get the attack in gear in front of the home fans Wednesday night. Luis Suárez (Inter Miami CF) - He's just one of the world-class names on a talented roster for Inter Miami head coach Tata Martino, but Luis Suárez has been experiencing an exceptional run of form lately. The Uruguayan internaional has scored five goals in three matches for the Herons, including both goals in the 2-0 shuout over FC Cincinnati on August 24. Inter Miami CF (19W-4L-5D, 62 points) is set for midweek MLS regular season action, with the team traveling to visit Atlanta United (8W-13L-7D, 31 points) this Wednesday, Sept. 18. Kick off at Mercedes-Benz Stadium is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. A post shared by La Tropical Beer (@latropicalbeer) Inter Miami fans can enjoy the action of the game in Atlanta along with fellow Club fans at the Watch Party at La Tropical. The event will be open to all ages and will include prizes and beer specials. Don't miss out! Address: 42 NE 25th St Miami, FL, 33137 MLS Season Pass will feature every live MLS regular-season match, the entire Audi MLS Cup Playoffs, and Leagues Cup all in one place, with consistent match times and no blackouts — a first in live sports broadcasting. With an MLS Season Pass subscription, fans can enjoy every MLS match on billions of devices through the Apple TV app on Apple devices, smart TVs, streaming devices, set-top boxes, and game consoles, as well as on the web at tv.apple.com. All matches will feature both English and Spanish-language announcers, while matches involving Canadian teams will also offer commentary in French. Inter Miami will enter Saturday's match after earning a 2-1 win over the Philadelphia Union on Saturday night to continue making history this 2024 MLS regular season. With the win, Inter Miami surpassed the 60 points mark, joining the 1998 LA Galaxy (28 games), 2019 LAFC (26 games), and the 2021 New England Revolution (28 games) as the only teams in MLS history to eclipse 60 points in 28 games or fewer. Notably, all three of those teams subsequently won the Supporters’ Shield in their respective seasons. The win was fueled by a brace from captain and Royal Caribbean Icon of the Match Lionel Messi in his return to MLS action for the first time since June 1, and another strike from star forward Luis Suárez . With the brace and assist on the night, the Argentine ace took his tally this regular season to 14 goals and 14 assists, and made further MLS history; Messi became the fastest player in MLS history to produce 15 goals and 15 assists, doing so in his first 19 MLS fixtures to break the previous record by 10 games (Sebastian Giovinco, 29 games). Additionally, Suárez’s strike saw him establish a new Club record, with his 17th goal this campaign breaking the previous record established by Gonzalo Higuaín for the most goals for an Inter Miami player in a single MLS regular season (16 goals in 2022). Messi was voted the Major League Soccer Player of the Matchday presented by Michelob Ultra for Matchday 32 of the 2024 MLS regular season. The award marked his fourth POTM honor of the campaign, becoming the first player to do so since LAFC’s Carlos Vela (six) in 2019. Read all about it HERE. In addition, Messi, Suárez and Jordi Alba were named to the MLS Team of the Matchday presented by Audi for week 32 of the 2024 regular season. The TOTM selection was the ninth for Messi, sixth for Suárez and fifth for Alba respectively this regular season. Read the complete details HERE. Inter Miami will visit Atlanta currently sitting first in the Supporters' Shield Standings with 62 points (seven points ahead of the team in second place) and leading the league in goals with a total 64 (seven more than the next team). Suárez leads the team in goals with 17 and is tied for second place amongst the league's top scorers this regular season. Captain Messi, meanwhile, leads the team in assists with 14 and is third amongst the top assist providers this MLS campaign. Forward Leonardo Campana and Messi are the two active leading scorers in Club history, with Campana having 29 across all competitions (25 in MLS) and Messi 27 (15 in MLS). Campana is tied with former striker Gonzalo Higuaín (who scored all 29 goals for Inter Miami in MLS play) as the leading scorers in Club history. Versatile attacker Robert Taylor (14 in MLS) and Messi (16 in MLS), meanwhile, are tied as the leading assist providers in Club history with 21 across all competitions. Callender and Taylor are the players with most appearances for Inter Miami with 107 and 104 across all competitions respectively. In terms of MLS appearances, In terms of MLS appearances, Callender leads with 85 (one in playoffs), while Taylor follows in second place with 84 (one in playoffs). Additiionally, Campana is the third player with most games for Inter Miami with 93 across all compeitions and is nearing the 100 appearance milestone. Inter Miami and Atlanta will meet for the second time this regular season and 14th overall in Club history across all competitions. Inter Miami has recorded five wins, five losses and three draws in its previews meeting against Atlanta. Atlanta United will host Inter Miami after most recently falling 0-2 at home against the Nashville SC on Sept 14. In all, the Georgia-based side have registered eight wins, 13 losses and seven draws for a total 31 points this regular season and sits 10th in the Eastern Conference standings. Midfielder Saba Lobjanidze leads the team both in goals and assists, tallying six and seven thus far this season respectively. Credit: AP Credit: AP ATLANTA (AP) — Another big Atlanta crowd finally got a chance to see Lionel Messi in an MLS match. They nearly watched United pull out a much-needed win over league-leading Inter Miami. Alexey Miranchuk scored with a booming shot in the 84th minute and the home team pressed hard for the winning goal in stoppage time, only to settle for a 2-2 tie with Messi's Miami club before an announced crowd of 67,795 on Wednesday night. After making a triumphant return to the Miami lineup with two goals and an assist last weekend, Messi started this game on the bench. Coach Gerardo Martino wanted to manage the minutes of his 37-year-old Argentine star, who is coming back from national team duties and an ankle injury with the club in the midst of a busy stretch. Messi trotted on the field in the 61st to a big roar, shortly after Leo Campana had scored off a deflected free kick to put the Herons in front. But the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner couldn't find the net in his limited time on the field, drawing plenty of attention from the United defenders. “You've gotta keep an eye on him,” Atlanta keeper Brad Guzan said with a wry smile. In June, Messi made an Atlanta appearance for Argentina in the opening game of the Copa America. But he didn't play a year ago when Miami visited Atlanta, disappointing a crowd of 71,635. He made the trip time around, thrilling the crowd simply by warming up with three teammates shortly into the second half. Fans in the lower deck whipped out their phones and began snapping pictures. Miami moved to 19-4-6 with five matches remaining in the regular season. The Herons pushed 12 points ahead of LA Galaxy, who played later Wednesday against Portland, in their bid to gain the Supporters' Shield and home-field advantage throughout the MLS playoffs. Messi showed flashes. most notably with a tight-angled shot that was swatted away by Guzan. Luis Suárez, who also came off the bench, collected the rebound with an open goal in front of him, only to be blocked at the line by Atlanta defender Pedro Amador. Messi also delivered a backfooted pass to Federico Redondo, who misfired trying to get it back to the Miami star on the give-and-go. In stoppage time, Messi dribbled around three players in the penalty area but failed to get off a shot. Finally, he threw up his arms in frustration when another pass was intercepted by Atlanta. With the home team trailing 2-1, Miranchuk unleashed a left-footed shot from 20 meters out that found the top left corner of the goal. United had been waiting for a moment like this from the Russian player who joined the club during the summer transfer window for reported $13 million fee, one of the highest ever for an incoming player to MLS. It was his first goal in four matches. “There’s not many goalkeepers in the world that are gonna save that one,” Guzan said. “That’s a glimpse of his quality and what he can do with the ball at his feet. We're trying to encourage him to do that more often.” Both teams pressed forward in the closing minutes, with Atlanta creating the bulk of the chances, but neither could break through. It was a discouraging result for Atlanta, which is 11th in the Eastern Conference and one point of out a playoff berth. “We need three points,” Guzan said. “You have as many chances as we had, we should be coming away with three points.” Miami grabbed the lead on David Ruiz’s goal in the 29th off another deflection. Franco Negri’s pass hit someone just outside the area, somehow got through three other players and wound up going right to Ruiz, who was all alone between two Atlanta defenders and slid the shot past Brad Guzan. United tied it in the 56th when Saba Lobjanidze’s header slipped between the legs of Miami keeper Drake Callender. Campana put the Herons ahead with a free kick that was intended for the right corner of the Atlanta goal. But the ball deflected off Dax McCarty and ricocheted into the net on the left side. Guzan, diving the other way, never had a chance. Two minutes later, Messi came on for Julian Gressel. UP NEXT Inter Miami: Faces New York City FC at Yankee Stadium on Saturday. Atlanta United: Travels to New York Red Bulls on Saturday. ___ AP MLS: https://apnews.com/hub/major-league-soccer Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: AP Credit: John Spink/AJC