The Argentine now stands alone atop CONMEBOL's men's goalscoring list.
Lionel Messi scored his 79th international goal on Thursday night to break the South American men's record held by Pele.
Messi scored all three goals in Argentina's World Cup qualifying win over Bolivia in Buenos Aires, giving him two more than the legendary Brazilian striker.
Only Brazilian stars Marta (109) and Cristiane (96) have scored more overall international goals than the Argentina icon now as he claimed his spot as the top men's goalscorer on the continent.
What did Messi say? “I really wanted to be able to enjoy it," Messi said after the match. "I waited a long time for this, I looked for it and I dreamed of it. It’s a unique moment for the way it happened after so much waiting.
“There was no better way to celebrate this than to be here. My mother, my brothers are in the stands… They suffered a lot and today, they are here celebrating. I’m very happy.”
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