Lionel Messi continues to break records.
Thursday, September 9, it is that of the legend Pelé of the number of goals scored in a South American selection that fell.
By scoring a hat-trick against Bolivia in Buenos Aires, the "Pulga" brought their personal total to 79 goals, against 77 for the Brazilian.
The Paris Saint-Germain striker first opened the scoring for Argentina in the 14th minute in the 2022 World Cup qualifier.
He scored a second goal in the 64th minute, cheering the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires, which was welcoming to the public for the first time since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Finally, two minutes before the end of the meeting, Messi signed the seventh treble of his career.
[# Record🥇] 🔴 Leo Messi became the top South American scorer in history last
night
ahead of Pelé 👑
7️⃣9️⃣ GOALS
A new record for the Legend✨ pic.twitter.com/bVuwq3MIHX
- Footballogue⭐️⭐️ (@Footballogue) September 10, 2021
Neymar hopes to beat him
A record that his PSG teammate and friend Neymar could eventually bring back to Brazil.
In Seleçao's victory over Peru, "Ney" scored his 69th goal in 113 matches, eight lengths from the former record of "King" Pelé.
An achievement that gives him the status of Brazilian top scorer in World Cup qualifying history.
"The team is the most important thing, I've always been proud of that. But at the same time, I'm very happy to be the top scorer in the playoffs [of Brazil], to be the biggest passer of the Brazilian national team and then, God willing, if all goes well, it will be an honor to overtake Pelé, "prophesied the player.
The all-time scoring record holder is Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, with 111 goals in 180 appearances, the most recent against Ireland last week.
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