MX23RW : Tuesday, November 5 07:49:13| >> :600:310738:310738:

Gerardo Martino: 'Lionel Messi will break Gabriel Batistuta's goalscoring record'

Gerardo Martino insists that Lionel Messi will break Gabriel Batistuta's goalscoring record for Argentina, after the Barcelona forward netted a brace against Bolivia.

Argentina head coach Gerardo Martino has insisted that Lionel Messi will break Gabriel Batistuta's international goalscoring record, after the Barcelona forward netted twice against Bolivia in a friendly on Friday.

Batistuta holds the current goalscoring record for Argentina with 56 strikes, while the brace against Bolivia was Messi's 47th and 48th goal for his country.

Martino now believes that Messi will reach Batistuta's total, despite only playing the forward for just the second half during the friendly in Texas.

"I am sure Leo will catch Batistuta as the team's leading scorer, he is getting closer," Martino told reporters after the match.

"It is logical that the people who pay for tickets and the organisers of the games want to see Messi playing.

"But we had to think carefully about him because he has played a lot of games. Luckily, in a short time, he made it worth the price of admission."

Argentina thrashed Bolivia 7-0 in the friendly, with Sergio Aguero and Ezequiel Lavezzi both netting a brace while Angel Correa added himself to the scoresheet.

ID:244320: cacheID:244320:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2374:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Lionel Messi celebrates with Argentina teammates Angel Di Maria and Marcos Rojo after opening the scoring against Nigeria in their World Cup Group F match on June 25, 2014
Read Next:
Preview: Argentina vs. Jamaica
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
1.15am
Buccaneers
@
Chiefs
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool108111961325
2Manchester CityMan City1072121111023
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest10541147719
4Chelsea105322012818
5Arsenal105321711618
6Aston Villa105321715218
7Tottenham HotspurSpurs1051422111116
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton104421714316
9Fulham104331413115
10Bournemouth104331312115
11Newcastle UnitedNewcastle104331010015
12Brentford104151920-113
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd10334912-312
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham103251319-611
15Leicester CityLeicester102441418-410
16Everton102351017-79
17Crystal Palace10145813-57
18Ipswich TownIpswich100551021-115
19Southampton10118719-124
20Wolverhampton WanderersWolves100371427-133


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!