Messi scores 100th Argentina goal in Curacao romp

SANTIAGO DEL ESTERO – Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni wants to see more goals from Lionel Messi, after his captain scored his 100th international goal as the world champions romped to a 7-0 friendly win over Curacao on Tuesday.

Messi, a seven-time Ballon d’Or winner, opened the scoring against the Caribbean island minnows on 20 minutes in Santiago del Estero.

The landmark came 17 years after he opened his Argentina account in a 3-2 loss to Croatia in March 2006.

The 35-year-old soon added another just after the half-hour mark to make it 3-0 and then completed his hat-trick on 37 minutes for Argentina’s fifth goal, as the World Cup holders toyed with their over-matched opponents.

It was his seventh hat-trick for the national team.

Nicolas Gonzalez, Enzo Fernandez, Angel di Maria and Gonzalo Montiel were the other scorers for La Albiceleste.

“We will never stop celebrating and I think it’s fair and deserved,” Scaloni said.

“I hope there will be more (Messi goals), he deserves all the praise and it’s good that these goals had been on Argentinian soil, that has a special value too.

“What I want is for him to be on the pitch and be happy.”

Messi came into the game not just as his country’s all-time record scorer, but also with more goals than the next two top marksmen – Gabriel Batistuta on 54 and Sergio Aguero with 41 – put together.

This was Argentina’s second match since winning the World Cup in dramatic style against France in Qatar in December – triumphing 4-2 on penalties after a thrilling 3-3 draw – and it was always going to be about Messi reaching 100 goals.

With 102 goals now, he remains third in the all-time list, behind rival Cristiano Ronaldo (122) of Portugal and Iran’s Ali Daei (109).

He had come up short last Thursday when he notched his 99th goal as Argentina toiled in their homecoming celebration match against Panama, which they won 2-0.

Thiago Almada had given his side the lead before Messi scored direct from a free kick – his 800th goal in professional football – in front of 83,000 delirious fans in Buenos Aires.

On Tuesday, Curacao, ranked 86th in the world, could hold out for only 20 minutes before Messi took a pass from Giovani lo Celso, cut inside his marker onto his weaker right foot and fired a low shot into the bottom corner.

The referee was then seen on live television throwing the ball to someone on the side of the pitch as DirecTV commentators speculated that it was heading “straight to the museum”.

The 42,000 fans present remained in party mood throughout, waiting for their heroes to lift the World Cup trophy in front of them at the end of the match. AFP, REUTERS