Messi destroys Bolivia, breaks Pele’s goals record

Lionel Messi, on Thursday, made a mess of Bolivia as Argentina romped their South American neighbours 3-0 in a World Cup qualifying match played in Buenos Aires.

Messi netted a hat-trick in the match, breaking Pele’s goals record of 79 international goals.

He is, however, yet to beat the records of Brazilian duo of Marta (109) and Cristiane (96) for the overall record for most goals scored by a South American player at the international level.

Third on the men’s list is the 34-year-old’s friend and Paris Saint-Germain teammate Neymar, who has 69 international goals for Brazil.

“I was very nervous, I just wanted to enjoy the night. I waited a long time for this.

“We won the game that was the most important thing and now we can celebrate,” an emotional Messi said after the match.

For Diaspora Digital Media Updates click on Whatsapp, or Telegram. For eyewitness accounts/ reports/ articles, write to: citizenreports@diasporadigitalmedia.com. Follow us on X (Fomerly Twitter) or Facebook