Argentina head coach Gerardo Martino praised captain Lionel Messi with jalkapallo pelipaidat peliasut after his 25-minute double against Bolivia moved him closer to his nation’s all-time goalscoring record.
Gabriel Batistuta currently holds the accolade with 56 strikes for his country, but the Barcelona attacker who are in Lionel Messi pelipaita is fast approaching the retired striker after his latest two strikes took his overall total to 48.
Despite starting Friday’s friendly in Texas from the substitutes’ bench, Messi got in on the act as Argentina thrashed Bolivia 7-0, with Sergio Aguero and Ezequiel Lavezzi also netting doubles, while Angel Correa rounded off the scoring late on.
The morale-boosting win was a contrast to the mood over the summer following Argentina’s defeat to Chile in the final of the Copa America - a tournament fallout which saw Messi criticised as even Martino indulged in speculation over his skipper’s international future while defending his performances.