Lionel Messi scores all five goals for Argentina in Estonia win
Lionel Messi netted all five goals for Argentina in their 5-0 friendly win over Estonia in Pamplona on Sunday
Lionel Messi scored all five goals for Argentina in their 5-0 friendly win over Estonia on Sunday and is now the fourth-highest international scorer of all time.
The Paris Saint-Germain attacker opened the scoring from the penalty spot after just eight minutes in Pamplona, before curling home the second from a tight angle just before half-time.
He then completed his hat-trick just two minutes after the break with a toe poke from close to the penalty spot to make it 3-0 to Argentina.
The fourth arrived in the 71st minute, when Messi advanced alone into the area and cut the ball back to wrong-foot the last defender and the goalkeeper before slotting into the empty net.
And the fifth came five minutes later as he pounced on a loose ball in the area, took one touch and slotted a low finish past the Estonia goalkeeper for 5-0.
Messi's five goals take him to 86 for Argentina, surpassing the 84 scored by Hungary legend Ferenc Puskas.
The former Barcelona forward is now behind only three players: Malaysia's Mokhtar Dahari (89), Iran's Ali Daei (109) and Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo (117).
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Ronaldo took his total up by two goals on Sunday after scoring twice for Portugal in their 4-0 win over Switzerland in the UEFA Nations League.
Ben Hayward is a European football writer and Tottenham Hotspur fan with over 15 years’ experience, he has covered games all over the world - including three World Cups, several Champions League finals, Euros, Copa America - and has spent much of that time in Spain. Ben speaks English and Spanish, currently dividing his time between Barcelona and London, covering all the big talking points of the weekend on FFT: he’s also written several list features and interviewed Guglielmo Vicario for the magazine.