Messi overtakes Pele as leading South American men’s goalscorer

Lionel Messi has overtaken Pele as the leading South American men’s goalscorer in international matches.

Lionel Messi has overtaken Pele as the leading South American men’s goalscorer in international matches with a hat-trick in Argentina’s World Cup qualifier win against Bolivia.

Scoring all the goals in the 3-0 win in Buenos Aires brought Messi’s total for Argentina to 79 in 153 games.

Brazil legend Pele finished his career on 77 international goals in 92 games.

Messi’s 14th-minute goal from outside the box put him level with Pele and he broke the record in the second half.

The 34-year-old dribbled past a defender for his second goal before completing a hat-trick from a rebound two minutes before full-time.After the match, Argentina captain Messi and his team-mates celebrated with the Copa America trophy in front of 20,000 fans at the Monumental Stadium

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