Lionel Messi scored the fastest 100 goals of his career for any club Wednesday night. Then he spent his trophy celebration walking up on MLS commissioner Don Garber, not once but twice, and by Thursday morning more people were talking about that than the record.

That’s twice on one stage, with the trophy already in his other hand.

Start with the part that should’ve been the whole story. Messi’s header in the 24th minute, set up by a Luis Suarez cross, was Inter Miami goal number 100 in all competitions, and ESPN clocked it at just 115 games. That’s faster than he got there at Barcelona, where it took 188 games, and faster than he’s ever done it with Argentina, where it took 174. Casemiro added a header of his own late to close out the 2-0 win over Cruz Azul, and Inter Miami’s brand-new manager won a trophy in literally his first match in charge.

None of that is why this morning’s conversation is about Messi’s face.

Cameras caught him approaching Garber twice during the trophy ceremony, visibly animated both times, and at one point Gulf News described Garber appearing to ask Messi for something before Messi seemed to wave him off. Nobody’s reported what was actually said, and I’m not going to pretend I know either, but I’ve watched the clip enough times to know that’s not a guy posing for a handshake photo.

See it for yourself:

https://twitter.com/herculezg/status/2100418544211001488

This is what makes it more than a random hot-mic moment. Back in July, Garber told Front Office Sports, in comments HITC later resurfaced, that his relationship with Messi has been strained since he suspended him a game in 2025 for skipping the All-Star Game, and that he believes Messi blames him personally for how officiating has gone this season. “I’m not sure that he looks at me as the guy who picks the officials,” Garber said. “I don’t, but he’s got to complain to somebody. I’ll take it.”

So the commissioner told everybody this was coming, on the record, months before it happened on a stage in front of every camera in South Florida.

I play in a rec league on Tuesday nights in Hoboken, and even our commissioner, a guy who mostly just reminds us to Venmo the ref fee, would’ve said something after hearing a player admit that in July. Garber runs a league staking its entire growth plan on one 39-year-old who’s still chasing records for two different teams at once, and he let the tension simmer all summer instead of getting in a room with him. Letting it reach a trophy stage isn’t bad luck. It’s a decision, and it just got made publicly for him.

Now, credit where it’s due: complaining about officiating the same year you got suspended for skipping an All-Star Game doesn’t automatically make you right, and the greatest player of his generation being a little touchy about respect isn’t exactly breaking news. Messi’s competitive fire is the same thing that got him a header in the 24th minute of a cup final at an age when most guys are doing TV analyst tryouts. You don’t get to keep the fire and complain when it occasionally points at the wrong target. Keep an eye on the rest of our soccer coverage, because something tells me this isn’t the last headline he makes this week.

If I’m MLS, I’m not bragging about the 100th goal this morning. I’m just hoping Messi doesn’t have more to say tomorrow.