Messi breaks Argentina's scoring record, nearly double Maradona's

A hat-trick against Ecuador not only sent Argentina to the World Cup, but also increased Messi's scoring record.

The latest three goals give Messi 61 goals for Argentina, setting a new record. M10's achievement is now seven goals ahead of the second-placed former striker Gabriel Batistuta.

Messi's achievements are also almost double that of Maradona. When he played for the Argentina national team, Maradona only scored 34 goals in 91 matches.

Current players also have little hope of breaking Messi's record. The two players with the closest achievements are Aguero (34 goals) and Higuain (31).

M10 is far ahead of the previous and current generation of players in terms of scoring goals for the team.

Messi has 122 caps for his country. If he continues to play regularly, the 30-year-old could break former defender Javier Zanetti's record of 143. Javier Mascherano has also played more games than Messi, with 139 appearances.

With a win over Ecuador and a hat-trick from Messi, Argentina have qualified for their 12th consecutive World Cup. This is a surprising result after the blue and white striped team had fallen to sixth place in the South American qualifying round and gradually lost hope.

According to VNE