Messi Leads Argentina to Victory Over Bolivia with 5 Goal Contributions
The Argentine star Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick and provided two assists to lead his national team to a 6-0 victory over Bolivia at the “Mas Monumental” stadium in the capital, Buenos Aires, during the tenth round of the South American qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Messi netted his hat-trick in the 19th, 84th, and 86th minutes, while assisting Lautaro Martínez’s goal (43) and Julián Álvarez’s goal (45+3). Thiago Almada added a fourth goal (69), in front of 85,000 spectators.
The 37-year-old Messi, an eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, had been sidelined for two months due to a foot injury sustained during Argentina’s Copa América victory over Colombia (1-0 after extra time). He made his return earlier this month, scoring two goals for his team, Inter Miami, in the MLS, bringing his tally to 17 goals and 15 assists in the league.
The former Barcelona star, who did not score in Argentina’s previous 1-1 draw against Venezuela, achieved the tenth hat-trick of his international career, increasing his international goal tally to 112 and his career goals to 846. Messi also tops the scorers’ list in the South American qualifiers with 6 goals, ahead of Uruguay’s Dario Núñez (5) and Colombia’s Luis Díaz (4).
Big wins for Brazil and Colombia as well
Argentina extended its lead at the top of the group with 22 points, three points ahead of Colombia, who defeated Chile 4-0 in Barranquilla, and six points ahead of Uruguay, who were held to a goalless draw by Ecuador. Brazil, who strengthened their fourth-place position, cruised to a 4-0 win over Peru.
Barcelona’s star, Raphinha, led the five-time world champions to their second consecutive victory after defeating Chile 2-1 in the previous round. Raphinha scored two goals (38 and 54, both from penalties), with substitutes Andreas Pereira adding a third with a spectacular overhead kick (71) and Luis Henrique scoring the fourth (74).
The Colombian national team celebrated the centenary of its football association in style, netting four goals against bottom-placed Chile at the “Metropolitano” stadium. Argentine coach Néstor Lorenzo’s men opened the scoring in the first half through defender Davinson Sánchez (34), before adding three more in the second half through Luis Díaz (52) and substitutes John Durán (82) and Luis Sinisterra (90+3).
In Montevideo, Uruguay, under Argentine coach Marcelo Bielsa, could only manage a goalless draw with Ecuador.
Bielsa, who has faced recent criticism from Uruguay’s all-time top scorer Luis Suárez, who retired from international football last month (69 goals in 143 matches), admitted that “La Celeste” is going through a tough time after the disappointing draw, which followed a heavy home defeat to Peru 0-1.
The former Marseille and Leeds United manager refused to link the team’s struggles to the criticism from Suárez, currently playing for Inter Miami.
“I am not unaware of what is happening, but if you tell me you couldn’t play well because of what you’ve been through, I would tell you no, it didn’t have any effect,” said Bielsa.
The Argentine coach, who took charge of the two-time world champions in May 2023, continued self-critically, “I’ll be honest, the truth is that Uruguay, in my view, has better players than the opponent they failed to beat. And when a team with better players does not win, we must always turn to the person who manages that group.
Paraguay, sixth with 13 points, boosted their chances of securing one of the six direct World Cup qualifying spots thanks to substitute Antonio Sanabria, who scored twice to secure a 2-1 win over Venezuela.
