Lionel Messi broke Brazil great Pele's South American goal scoring record with a hat-trick that helped Argentina beat Bolivia 3-0 in the World Cup qualifiers on Thursday. Messi became the best scorer in South American football history The 34-year-old scored 79 goals for Argentina, overtaking Pele's tally of 77. The Argentine captain opened the way for his team at the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires in front of 20,000 lucky fans in the 14th minute. He moved the ball between the legs of a Bolivian defender and shot from outside the penalty area to the right of the goalkeeper Carlos Lampe. Once again he showed his technique to score the second in the 64th minute. Messi and forward Lautaro Martinez exchanged four quick passes to put the six-time Ballon D'Or winner in a magnificent position. He still had time to dribble past one defender before scoring. Messi completed his hat-trick in the 88th minute from close range after getting a rebound from Lampe. Also Read- LaLiga will not be weakened by Lionel Messi's exit, says ex-Real Madrid player Fernando MorientesArgentina now have 18 points in second place. Bolivia remains in ninth place with six. Brazil and Argentina will have one less competitive match after this international window since the Super Classic was suspended on Sunday. FIFA has yet to decide what will happen will the match, as it was stopped in a shocking way after Brazilian health officials tried to remove four Argentinian players for allegedly providing false information to authorities. The top four teams from the South American qualifiers earn direct spots in the World Cup finals in Qatar next year, and the fifth-place team will go into an intercontinental playoff. Previously, Uruguay beat Ecuador by 1-0 to move to third place in the table. Uruguay managed to get a last-minute home win against Ecuador, which was key to their hopes of qualifying for the World Cup. The header by Gaston Pereiro in stoppage time allowed Uruguay to add 15 points and take Ecuador third on the table. The Ecuadorians still with 13 points, are in fourth place and they are also well positioned to go to Qatar next year. Colombia also clinched an important 3-1 home win over Chile in a magnificent performance from forward Miguel Borja. He scored the first from the spot in the 19th minute and added another one minute later. Chile reduced the gap in the 56th minute with Jean Menezes, but Luis Diaz added Colombia's last goal in the 74th minute. Also on Thursday, Paraguay beat Venezuela 2-1. The hosts scored with David Martínez and Alejandro Romero in the 7th and 46th minutes. The visitors scored their only goal in the 90th minute with John Chancellor. He posted on social media after the game: "I dreamed a lot about this day and thank God it came. "I have no words to thank you for all the love received. What a beautiful night, I really enjoyed it. Unforgettable."View this post on InstagramA post shared by Leo Messi (@leomessi)Also Read- Lionel Messi signs two-year contract with Paris Saint-Germain after leaving BarcelonaAlso Read- Cristiano Ronaldo becomes all-time highest goalscorer in international football with brace against Ireland
Lionel Messi failed to provide Paris St Germain with any sparkle as the Ligue 1 team's potent attacking trio lacked inspiration in a disappointing 1-1 draw at Club Brugge in their Champions League opener on Wednesday.In his debut with the French team, the Argentine forward managed to surpass him, but he was far from his brilliant best next to the disappointing Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, who set up Ander Herrera for PSG's first-half opener before being replaced injured after the break.Brugge, who levelled before halftime through Hans Vanaken, were more powerful and had the best chances against a PSG that lacks quality and defensive focus.The result left Paris Saint-Germain and Bruges two points behind Group A leaders Manchester City after the Premier League champions crushed RB Leipzig 6-3."We didn't play a fantastic game but to be fair we did enough to win, we deserved to win," said Herrera."Maybe they had opportunities at the beginning of the second half but I think we controlled the match, we had a lot of chances."Also Read- Lionel Messi surpasses Pele's goalscoring record, leads Argentina to win in World Cup qualifiersBrugge keeper Simon Mignolet disagreed."I didn't have a lot of work, I just pulled a couple of saves. We played as a compact side, it was the right approach," the Belgian said.With Messi, Neymar and Mbappe together on the pitch for the first time, PSG made a confident start but Brugge responded well.FULL-TIME: Club Brugge 1-1 @PSG_English The points are shared on Matchday 1 of the @ChampionsLeague. #UCL | #CLUPSG pic.twitter.com/P3EVbjqQxP— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English) September 15, 2021Mbappe broke the left flank and his low cross was met by Herrera, and opened the scoring in the 15th minute with a low shot to score his fourth goal this season-his third goal in the last two games.Messi set up Mbappe, who went close in the 23rd minute with an angled shot that was deflected by Mignolet but PSG were lulled into a false sense of security.Also Read- LaLiga will not be weakened by Lionel Messi's exit, says ex-Real Madrid player Fernando Morientes
Paris Saint-Germain head coach Mauricio Pochettino admitted that his star-studded squad is still under construction, on the eve of hosting Manchester City in their Group A match in Paris on Tuesday.Pochettino remained evasive about who is PSG first-choice goalkeeper and whether Keylor Navas or new signing Gianluigi Donnarumma will start against City.Up front, Pochettino expects Lionel Messi to return in attack as the Argentine shakes off a minor knee injury that sidelined him for two games. Messi's last Champions League goal for Barcelona came against Paris Saint-Germain at Parc des Princes in last season's last-16. He had a penalty saved in that game by Navas.Paris Saint-Germain opened their Champions League campaign with a disappointing 1-1 draw with Club Brugge two weeks ago.Also Read- Virat Kohli to quit RCB captaincy after the end of IPL 2021 season
Lionel Messi scored his first Paris Saint-German goal in the French club's 2-0 win over visiting Manchester City while Luxembourg midfielder Sébastien Thill struck late for Sheriff to stun 13-time champion Real Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday. Messi, who joined PSG on a two-year contract after leaving Barcelona, found the top corner superbly in the second half to add to Idrissa Gueye's early first-half opener and put the capital club top of Group A on four points. Luis Suárez also struck late as his injury-time penalty gave Atlético Madrid a 2-1 win at 10-man AC Milan. Club Brügge and Liverpool also claimed away wins at Leipzig and Porto, respectively.Messi scores maiden goal for PSG After two games, City are third on three points after their first defeat in a group stage game since 2018 ended an 18-match unbeaten run, a point behind PSG and Club Brugge, who won 2-1 at RB Leipzig. Real Madrid slumped to a 2-1 defeat by Moldovan side Sheriff Tiraspol in the Champions League on Tuesday as the visitors pulled off one of the biggest shocks in the competition's history with a stunning 89th-minute strike from Sebastien Thill. Spanish champion Atlético were second best for long periods at Group B rival Milan. Luis Suarez's stoppage-time penalty and Antoine Griezmann's first goal since returning to Atletico Madrid earned the Spanish side a 2-1 victory over 10-man AC Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday. On the other hand, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino both struck twice and Sadio Mane once in a 5-1 drubbing of the Portuguese champions to seize control of Champions' League Group B.Also Read- Messi may return for PSG against Manchester City in UCL
Ferran Torres put Spain into the Nations League final on Wednesday with a brace in a 2-1 win that ended Italy's world record unbeaten run at 37 matches in front of their own fans. Torres struck twice in the first half to make sure that Luis Enrique's Spain won the Final Four clash at the San Siro in Milan, where they will face either France or Belgium in Sunday's final. Lorenzo Pellegrini pulled a goal back with seven minutes left but the European champions failed to complete what would have been a memorable comeback after a spirited second-half performance with 10 men. Italy, who beat Spain in the Euro 2020 semi-finals, had to play over half the match with one man fewer after Leonardo Bonucci was sent off in the 42nd minute for picking up a second yellow card for elbowing Sergio Busquets in the face during an aerial challenge. "The first half could have easily finished 1-1... It's a shame because we would have stayed with 11 men were it not for an error which you can't commit at this level," Italy coach Roberto Mancini told RAI. The match took place in a strange atmosphere, as AC Milan fans on the field provoked Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma during his return to the San Siro following his move to Paris Saint-Germain. Donnarumma, who is considered one of the world's best goalkeepers and won the Player of the Tournament award at the Euro, left Milan as a free agent in the summer and his departure left a bad taste in the mouth of supporters who loudly booed and whistled his every touch of the ball.Also Read- Harmanpreet Singh, Gurjit Kaur win best player awards as India sweep international hockey honours "It upset us, because it was Italy playing, it wasn't a club match. They could have put it to one side for one match," Mancini told reporters later. "Italy is Italy and I think it should come above everything else."Fans attack DonnarummaDonnarumma was barracked by the home fans both when he came out for the pre-match warm-up and when the teams were read out, with the boos and whistles loud enough to drown out the announcements over the stadium's speakers. He was even whistled by some home supporters on his first touch of the ball in the fourth minute although by that point others in the crowd had started to applaud him in an attempt to cover up the criticism. However boos persisted every time he got the ball and in one bizarre moment Bonucci took a goal kick, only to roll the ball a couple of metres to Donnarumma, who again had to try to block out a wave of anger from the stands. They clearly started to have an effect on his performance, first reacting sluggishly to Torres' flick which put Spain one goal ahead in the 17th minute. Only two minutes later, Donnarumma then fumbled an innocuous shot from Marcos Alonso onto the post and had to thank Bonucci for getting back in time to clear the ball off the line. After a period of Spain dominance, Italy responded and should have at least been level 10 minutes before the break, Federico Bernadeschi having a 34th-minute shot pushed onto the post before Lorenzo Insigne fluffed the easiest chance of the half. Emerson Palmieri was sent charging behind the right side of the Spanish defence and rolled a perfect low cross to the unmarked Insigne, who sliced wide a side-footed finish. However, the hosts' task was made much harder just before the break when Bonucci was sent off and Torres all but killed off their hopes of extending their record with his deft header from another Mikel Oyarzabal cross. Down to 10, Italy gave a good account of themselves and Pellegrini cut the deficit with seven minutes remaining largely thanks to Federico Chiesa. Juventus forward Chiesa nicked the ball after a Spanish corner was cleared and charged down the field unopposed before laying on the Roma midfielder to tap into an open goal which briefly gave Italy fans hope. World champions France takes on Belgium at Juventus' Allianz Stadium in Turin on Thursday.Also Read- Anshu Malik becomes first Indian woman to reach wrestling World Championships final
