WATCH: Lionel Messi reaches landmark 800th career goal with a banger against Panama in friendly game
Lionel Messi scores his 800th career goal (Source: Twitter)
Argentina, led by Lionel Messi, played in their first match since winning the World Cup in December, defeating Panama 2-0 in a friendly on Thursday. The Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires was festive as Thiago Almada and Lionel Messi scored goals. Manager Lionel Scaloni started the same lineup that faced France in the World Cup final. In the first half of the game, Argentina was unable to penetrate the Panamanian defence, but Almada tied the score with his first goal for Panama on a rebound from a Messi free-kick.
The Argentine captain, then, finally scored his 800th career goal with a free-kick that went into the top-right corner of the goal. His 89th minute goal doubled Argentina’s lead, ensuring a victory for the side in front of an 80,000-strong crowd at ‘El Monumental’. Messi became the second footballer to surpass 800 goals behind Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal, who has 830 career goals to his name.
Watch Messi’s historic 800th goal vs Panama here:
Messi's 800th career goal comes as a free kick in his first game with Argentina as World Cup champions.
Perfect.
(via @TV_Publica)pic.twitter.com/sWSREGPOBZ
— B/R Football (@brfootball) March 24, 2023
‘I always dreamed of this moment’ – Lionel Messi
“I always dreamed of this moment, to celebrate with you in my country Argentina, lifting the greatest thing that is the World Cup,” Messi said at a post-match ceremony. “Let’s keep doing what we are doing and enjoy this, because we have been waiting a long time to win it again. Let’s enjoy the third star.”
A tearful Scaloni added: “Eternal gratitude to these players. Football belongs to them, and without them we wouldn’t have won the World Cup. Everyone who wears this shirt gives their all and sometimes the results don’t come. But this time we got it and it’s incredible,” said the coach before a victory lap of players and families reminiscent of the one his team did 95 days ago at the Lusail Stadium after winning the World Cup final against France in a penalty shootout. Historically, the 2022 World Cup final was the only third to be decided through penalties following World Cup 1994 and 2006.
