Inside Inter Miami: Messi is back! We toast with yerba mate and preview Atlanta, NYCFC

The GOAT is back.

And it was like he never left as Lionel Messi returned to Inter Miami’s lineup and scored twice to rally the club to a 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Union last Saturday night at Chase Stadium.

On the latest episode of Inside Inter Miami, hosts Michelle Kaufman and Andre Fernandez deliver on a promise to drink some yerba mate - a traditional South American drink and a favorite of Messi, Luis Suarez and many more on Inter Miami’s squad in Messi’s honor.

Then we talk about Messi’s return and immediate impact on an already-prolific scoring team, which saw Suarez score his 17th goal of the season.

Good news for Inter Miami is that Messi is expected to make both trips to Atlanta for Wednesday night’s match and New York for Saturday’s match. Kaufman speaks to Inter Miami coach Tata Martino about that and what shape the team’s lineup may take with the club dealing with both injuries and yellow card suspensions to key players.

Kaufman also spoke to Benja Cremaschi about his contract extension and his rise to prominence as a homegrown star and at such a young age.

And we look at the Supporters Shield race with six games to go and what is the team’s magic number to clinch home field throughout the postseason.

Remember, you can watch this show on YouTube and on our site at miamiherald.com. The podcast is available on Spotify, Apple podcasts, and most other platforms where you listen to your pods. Thank you for watching and listening, and enjoy!