Lionel Messi was rated the highest in the match, when he assisted Lautaro Martinez to score the only goal in Argentina’s 1-0 win over Peru in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
*Goal scorer: Lautaro 55′.
In the 55th minute, Messi received the ball on the left, beat two players and crossed for Lautaro Martinez to volley the ball into the top corner with his back to the goal. This was the 1,999th goal in the history of the Argentine national team, and the 27-year-old striker equaled the scoring record of legend Diego Maradona for the national team (32 goals).
Lautaro scored the only goal, but was rated as the second best player in the match, after Messi himself. The Argentine captain received 8.3 points according to Fotmob statistics, with three passes creating good chances for his teammates. Meanwhile, the Inter Milan striker received 7.9 points, with one missed opportunity.
The assist for Lautaro also helped Messi equal Landon Donovan’s (US national team) record of 58 assists at the national team level. In 192 matches for Argentina, the 37-year-old superstar also scored 112 goals, meaning he contributed to 170 goals for the team.
This is also Messi’s last match in 2024, as he finished his previous club season with Inter Miami. This year, he scored 29 goals and assisted 18 times in 36 matches. On average, Messi had a hand in 1.3 goals per match. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner won two titles this year, including the Supporters’ Shield with Inter Miami and the Copa America with Argentina.
The South American qualifying round for the 2026 World Cup consists of 10 teams playing a double round-robin, with six teams qualifying for the finals, while the seventh team plays a play-off. After 12 rounds, defending champions Argentina are still in first place with 25 points, 12 points ahead of seventh-placed Bolivia.
Messi will take a break in the next two months before starting the 2025 season with Inter Miami and Argentina. In addition to the MLS, he will join Miami in the new FIFA Club World Cup format for the first time in June 2025. Although Miami did not win the 2024 MLS Cup, they were still selected by FIFA to participate in the tournament, and could be ranked top seed.
The FIFA Club World Cup also features many strong European clubs such as Real Madrid, Man City, Bayern Munich, PSG, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Juventus and Atletico Madrid. Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr is not eligible to participate in this tournament.
