Lionel Messi broke a tie with Iran’s Ali Daei to become the second all-time leading scorer in international men’s football with a goal against Canada in the Copa America semi-final.
The Argentine’s 51st-minute goal was his 109th for La Albiceleste. As well as securing a chance to challenge for their second straight Copa America title with a 2-0 victory, Messi’s strike moved him one goal ahead of the Iranian legend.
However, Messi will need to score 21 more goals as an international to surpass Cristiano Ronaldo’s 130 goals for Portugal.
Messi’s fine close-range strike was his first goal of the 2023 Copa America and his 14th goal of the tournament.
Before Messi took the lead, he equalled Daei’s all-time top scorer tally with two goals in a 4-1 win over Guatemala ahead of kick-off of the Copa America in the United States.
Lionel Messi became the second-best goalscorer in international football on Tuesday
Messi broke his tie with Ali Daei with a goal against Canada in the Copa America semi-final
In addition to his rise in the goalscoring charts, Messi broke another record this year by playing a key role in the opening match of the tournament.
In his 35th appearance in seven editions of the competition, the Inter Miami star broke a record held by Chilean goalkeeper Sergio Livingstone since 1953. The future legend made his first tournament appearance in 2007.
While Messi still trails the Portuguese star, India’s Sunil Chhetri trails Daei with 93 goals for the Blue Tigers. Meanwhile, Malaysia’s Mokhtar Dahari completes the top five with 89 goals.
In the men’s and women’s divisions, Canada’s Christine Sinclair is the all-time leading scorer with 190 goals in 328 international matches.
Messi needs 21 more goals for Argentina to equal Cristiano Ronaldo’s 130 goals for Portugal
With a 2-0 victory, Messi helped his country to their second consecutive Copa America final place
Messi led Argentina to Copa America glory in 2021 before winning the World Cup in 2022
After winning the Copa America in 2021, Messi led Argentina to victory at the World Cup in Qatar the following year.
His record books now read 186 caps, 109 goals and 56 assists for his country.
While Messi is chasing his third first-team trophy, he also has an Olympic gold medal in his possession, having won it with the Argentina U-23 team at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.