World Cup

Lionel Messi breaks Argentina World Cup goalscoring record in semi-final

By Barney Corkhill, Editor | 13 December 2022

Lionel Messi becomes Argentina's highest-ever scorer at World Cups, overtaking Gabriel Batistuta's record with the opening goal against Croatia in the semi-final.

Lionel Messi has become the first Argentine player to score 11 World Cup goals by netting the opener in their semi-final against Croatia this evening.

The 35-year-old had equalled Gabriel Batistuta's national record of 10 World Cup goals in the quarter-final win over Netherlands, and he has now moved out on his own as the highest-scoring Argentina player in the history of the competition.

Messi brought up the landmark with a thunderous penalty, slamming the ball into the top corner shortly after the half-hour mark following Dominik Livakovic's foul on Julian Alvarez.

Livakovic had saved four penalties in shootouts in the previous two rounds, while Messi missed from the spot earlier in the tournament, but the Paris Saint-Germain star left the Croatia keeper no chance from 12 yards this time around.

The goal is Messi's fifth in six games at this winter's World Cup in Qatar, putting him level with Kylian Mbappe in the Golden Boot race and taking him on to 11 overall having scored six times in his previous four tournaments.

The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner is now only one goal behind Pele's mark of 12 World Cup goals, while Just Fontaine, Gerd Muller, Ronaldo and Miroslav Klose are the only other players to have scored more times than Messi on the biggest stage.

The record is the second Messi has broken or equalled in the semi-final, having also matched Lothar Matthaus's record of 25 World Cup appearances by being named in the starting lineup.