Lionel Messi pulled off an outrageous nutmeg during Argentina’s 1-0 win over Paraguay in the Copa America.
Victory for Argentina in the early hours of Tuesday morning means they’ve qualified for the knockout stages with a game to spare.
Late in the game, Messi decided to have some fun and he casually snatched the souls of two different players.
Angel Cardozo Lucena completely missed the mark with his tackle and flew off the screen, before Santiago Arzamendia had the ball popped between his legs.
Lionel messi left them for dead 🤯
— TM (@TotalLeoMessi) June 22, 2021
Only Messi could pull off something so magical while making it look so simple.
The Barcelona captain played a part in Argentina’s winning goal too, laying the ball off to Angel Di Maria.
Di Maria then provided a lovely through ball for Papu Gomez, who dinked over goalkeeper Antony Silva.
It was Messi’s 147th game for La Albiceleste and he’s the nation’s most capped player in history alongside Javier Mascherano.
Fans have paid tribute to Messi’s trademark magic and they’re amazed he’s producing these performances at 33 years old.
Lionel messi left them for dead 🤯
— TM (@TotalLeoMessi) June 22, 2021
This should be a crime😓, doing this to grown men with families
— Trae Dinero 🇺🇸🇳🇬 (@disngelo) June 22, 2021
goat doing goat things🐐
— vinar ✪ (@vinarr__) June 22, 2021
brake check one and catches the other one slackin with his legs open 🤮🔥 https://t.co/idJ4cqYNgP
— Tarzan🦍 (@tarzaannn__) June 22, 2021
Messi took to Instagram to mark his milestone.
The six-time Ballon d’Or winner said: “Another important win to keep growing. I’m proud to have been able to wear the sky blue and white shirt as many times as my friend Masche, who I love very much and have always respected and admired.”
He’s played every minute of Argentina’s Copa America campaign so far, but manager Lionel Scaloni admits it’s ‘very difficult’ to not rely on Messi.
“The reality is that Messi has been playing every game and it is very difficult not to count on him. Even though he is tired, he continues to make the difference,” Scaloni told reporters per Goal.
“Today we made several changes and, despite that, we were able to take all three points.”