Lionel Messi added another feather to Argentina’s legendary hat during Wednesday’s (March 29) international friendly against Curacao at the Unique Mother of Cities Stadium in Santiago del Estero. Messi scored his 100th goal for Argentina during the world champions’ 7-0 demolition of Curacao, joining an elite list that includes former Iran center forward Ali Daei and his long-time adversary Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal. Only Ronaldo and Daei had scored 100 or more international goals before Messi, and the 35-year-old is now only the third footballer to do so.
Lionel Messi reached the three-figure mark in the 20th minute of Argentina’s 174th game, in which he was playing for the three-time FIFA World Cup champions. Giovani Lo Celsa made a wonderful ball to the Argentina captain inside the penalty area, and the captain then sped past two players to score.
Lionel Messi continued to celebrate after scoring his 100th goal while wearing the Argentina jersey. He completed the game with two additional goals, bringing his total number of goals scored internationally to 102 and recording his 57th career hat trick. Portuguese captain Ronaldo (122) leads the list of most international goals, with Iran’s Ali Daei (109) trailing him. Messi, on the other hand, will try to catch Daei and close the gap on his long-time adversary Ronaldo in the near future.
After the match, fellow goalscorer Nicolas Gonzalez lauded Messi and said, “You cannot describe Lionel Messi in words. He’s the best in the world and he shows it match after match, day after day. Every time he touches the ball, he makes you smile.”