Lionel Messi reached a landmark achievement earlier this month when he became the all-time leader in international goals by a CONMEBOL player. The Argentine’s hat-trick showing against Bolivia in 2022 World Cup qualifying action moved him to a record 79 career international goals.
This record was previously held by former Brazilian national team star Pele, who finished his Selecao career with 77 goals.
Pele, who had recently undergone an operation to remove a colon tumor, issued his congratulations to Messi for the achievement on Saturday via his official Instagram account.
“Hello @leomessi, sorry if I’m late,” Pele noted. “However, I didn’t want to pass up the chance to congratulate you for another record broken earlier this month. Your talent for playing ball is amazing! I hope you achieve even more, alongside my friends@k.mbappe e @neymarjr.”
Pele congratulates Lionel Messi for breaking his South American goal-scoring record ❤ pic.twitter.com/SSVJX7pcOY
— TotalMessi (@TotaILeoMessi) September 25, 2021
While Messi currently holds this record, Neymar may soon take the top spot in this leaderboard, as he has scored 69 goals over his Selecao career.
Messi is a world footballer super star