Lionel Messi brought up his half-century of international goals for Argentina as he inspired an easy 2-0 World Cup qualifying win over Bolivia in Cordoba.

The 28-year-old’s 29th-minute penalty took him to just six behind leading scorer Gabriel Batistuta’s tally of 54 and on this evidence it will only be a matter of time before he breaks the record.

Messi is now just six goals behind his country’s record goalscorer Gabriel Batistuta, but the Barcelona superstar says the important thing is that Argentina secured a win that leaves them third in the CONMEBOL section, two points adrift of Uruguay and Ecuador after six matches.

Having helped Argentina to six points over the international break, Messi is now focused on Barcelona’s challenge for honours and particularly Saturday’s mouth-watering Clasico against Real Madrid.

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