Argentine captain Lionel Messi has reportedly become the highest goalscorer in FIFA World Cup history after surpassing the previous record held by German legend Miroslav Klose.
Messi achieved the milestone during Argentina’s match against Austria on Monday night, scoring twice to take his tournament tally beyond Klose’s long-standing record.
The Argentine star had earlier equalled Klose’s mark of 16 World Cup goals with a hat-trick in his side’s opening game against Algeria. His brace against Austria then moved him clear at the top of the all-time scoring chart.
Despite the historic achievement, Messi remained focused on his team’s success rather than personal accolades.
“I am tired now, I’m not thinking about that,” Messi told Fox Sports in Spanish.
“I just want to enjoy the win with my teammates. We’ve already given people many moments of joy, but we’ll try to give them even more.”
The 39-year-old forward declined to speculate on how many more goals he could score during the tournament, choosing instead to celebrate the victory with his teammates.
Klose, who currently manages German club Nuremberg, congratulated Messi on breaking the record and hailed him as the greatest footballer of all time.
“For me, Lionel Messi is the best of all time,” Klose told German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung. “Congratulations, champ!”
Messi’s latest achievement adds another chapter to an illustrious career that has seen him win multiple major honours for both club and country, including the FIFA World Cup with Argentina.