Argentina ended their campaign in the group stage of Copa America 2021 with a thumping 4-1 win over Bolivia on Tuesday morning at the Arena Pantanal in Cuiaba, Brazil.
With the win, Argentina finished at the top of Group 'B' with 10 points from four matches and will now face Ecuador in the quarterfinal.
Lionel Messi scored a brace and provided an assist to cap off his record 148th appearance in La Albiceste shirt in international football, Surpassing Javier Mascherano's 147 matches.
The two goals against Bolivia also took the FC Barcelona star's international goals to 75 as he touches India's Sunil Chhetri's goals tally.
When did Lionel Messi make his international debut?
The FC Barcelona skipper made his international debut for Argentina on August 17th, 2005 against Hungary, a game which they won 2-1. It must be remembered that his debut was amongst the most bizarre ones as he picked up a red card within a minute of being introduced by coach Jose Pekerman. He replaced Lisandro Lopez in the 64th minute and thereafter, caught Vilmos Vanczak with a stray elbow.
“He came through me and had hold of me and I wanted to break free. But the referee interpreted it as though I had tried to shove him away.
"I went on with a lot of time left in the game, but then what happened, happened. "It was not like I had dreamed it would be,” reminisced Messi.
Who are the top 10 most capped players for Argentina?
| Number | Name | Appearances |
|---|---|---|
| 1) | Lionel Messi | 148 |
| 2) | Javier Mascherano | 147 |
| 3) | Javier Zanetti | 143 |
| 4) | Roberto Ayala | 114 |
| 5) | Angel Di Maria | 107 |
| 6) | Diego Simeone | 103 |
| 7) | Sergio Aguero | 100 |
| 8) | Oscar Ruggeri | 97 |
| 9) | Sergio Romero | 96 |
| 10) | Diego Maradona | 91 |