(CNN)Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick successful Argentina's 3-0 triumph against Bolivia to go South America's grounds goalscorer successful men's planetary football.
Messi's haul of 79 goals crossed 153 games tops Brazilian large Pelé's 77 successful 91 games.
The 34-year-old drew level with Pelé's grounds successful the 14th infinitesimal of Thursday's crippled with a left-footed changeable from the borderline of the box, past moved up with a second-half extremity that came via neat interplay with Lautaro Martínez.
He had different extremity ruled retired for offside but completed his hat-trick erstwhile helium converted a rebound precocious on.
After the match, Messi was successful tears arsenic helium celebrated Argentina's Copa América rubric successful beforehand of 21,000 supporters astatine the Monumental stadium successful Buenos Aires -- the archetypal clip that fans could ticker the nationalist squad since the commencement of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The trophy, which Argentina won successful July with a 1-0 triumph against Brazil, was Messi's archetypal for his country.
"I was truly looking guardant to enjoying this. I waited a agelong clip for this, I looked for it and I dreamed it. It's a unsocial infinitesimal for however it came about, aft waiting truthful long," Messi said astir celebrating the Copa América triumph with fans.
"There's nary amended mode to observe it than being here. My ma and my brothers were successful the stands ... they suffered a batch and, today, they're present celebrating. I'm truthful happy."
Following the triumph against Bolivia, Argentina is present 2nd successful South America's World Cup qualifying radical for Qatar 2022 connected 18 points from 8 games, down Brazil connected 24.
Messi scored his archetypal extremity for Argentina successful 2006 successful a affable against Croatia. Of his 79 planetary goals, 35 person travel successful friendlies, 25 successful qualifiers, 12 successful Copa Américas and six successful World Cups.
Brazil's Marta is the apical South American scorer with 109 goals for the women's team.
Earlier this month, Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo became the apical planetary scorer successful men's football with his 111th goal, surpassing the erstwhile grounds of 109 held by Iran's Ali Daei.
Ahead of this season, Messi moved to French broadside Paris Saint-Germain successful a bid to triumph the Champions League, ending his semipermanent relation with Barcelona.
"It's bully for French football, for the league, for the media, for the spectators," AS Monaco midfielder Cesc Fàbregas, who played alongside Messi astatine Barcelona, told CNN Sport's Amanda Davies of his erstwhile teammate's determination earlier this week.
"I deliberation everyone is truly excited astir it. Obviously, he's an icon wherever helium goes. I deliberation it was besides unexpected truthful that makes it adjacent better."
Fàbregas besides said that helium ne'er expected Messi to permission Barcelona, adding: "I didn't deliberation that this time would come. I've experienced galore things successful football, things that you cannot adjacent ideate and immoderate of them are precise unexpected."
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