On Tuesday, Lionel Messi once again carved his name in soccer history as he became the international soccer all-time assist leader in a 4-0 win for Argentina against Puerto Rico.
Two goals set up the Inter Miami star – who was absent from the earlier fixture against Venezuela – and his international assist number is now 60.
Messi surpasses Neymar (59) of Brazil and Landon Donovan (58), the U.S. soccer legend, thus making the Argentine the most prolific creator in recorded international history, ESPN reports.
The record for international assists is a relatively new one that has only been officially recognized since the late 1990s when Opta provided the following definition for the statistic: “the final pass or pass-cum-shot which directly leads to a goal.”Messi, therefore, can only think of club football now, after the international duty.
The 38-year-old is after a second consecutive MLS Most Valuable Player (MVP) award — a feat that only Predrag “Preki” Radosavljević has accomplished twice, although never in back-to-back seasons. Besides personal glory, Messi intends to lead Inter Miami to their first-ever MLS Cup victory. By winning the title, it would be a perfect goodbye season for fellow Barcelona icons Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba as the trio would be seeking one final victory together.
