Lionel Messi played the 1000th game of his professional career against Australia in the FIFA World Cup 2022, and it was a night to remember for him. Lionel Messi’s Argentina faced Australia in the round of 16 in the FIFA World Cup 2022, which Argentina won 2-1.
The Argentine talisman scored the opening goal for Argentina in the 35th minute. Manchester City’s Julian Alvarez scored the second. Although Australia temporarily threatened Argentina after an Enzo Fernandez own-goal, it was not enough as Argentina progressed to the quarterfinals. Argentina will face the Netherlands in the quarterfinals of the World Cup.
How many goals Lionel Messi has scored in 1000 matches?
It was a memorable night for Argentina’s captain Lionel Messi, as he capped off his 1000th game with an important win. Messi’s goal saw him overtake Diego Maradona as the second top-scorer for Argentina in the World Cup finals. Messi, with 9 goals to his tally, is just two goals shy of breaking the top-scoring Argentine Gabriel Batistuta’s record.
The Paris Saint-Germain star’s record after his 1000th game is breathtaking. Messi has 789 goals and 348 assists to his name. That’s 1137 goal contributions in just 1000 appearances. The 35-year-old soccer legend has also 41 trophies to his name. Dani Alves, the 39-year-old Brazilian right-back, holds the record of having won the most trophies by a footballer, which is 43.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s stats after his 1000th games
Lionel Messi versus Cristiano Ronaldo is perhaps the most difficult and unending debate in the world of soccer. The two players who are considered to be the greatest of all time by their respective fans have been dominating the soccer world for almost two decades now.
Cristiano Ronaldo played the 1000th match of his career back in 2020 when he was playing for Juventus. Here’s a look at how the two players have performed after the 1000th game of their professional careers.
Messi has 789 goals and 348 assists to his name after playing 1000 professional games. Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo scored 725 goals and registered 216 assists after playing his 1000th professional game. Messi won 41 trophies while Ronaldo had 31 trophies.
Talking about individual records, Messi has won a record seven Ballon d’Or titles, while Cristiano Ronaldo has five Ballon d’Or titles. Messi also holds the record for winning the most European golden boots with six to his name, while Ronaldo has won it four times.
🇵🇹 Cristiano Ronaldo after 1000 games;
⚽️ 725 goals
🎯 216 assists
🏆 31 trophies🇦🇷 Lionel Messi after 1000 games;
⚽️ 789-goals
🎯 348-assists
🏆 41-trophies🔝#FIFAWorldCup Stats #Messi𓃵|#CR7𓃵|#ARG|#ARGAUS pic.twitter.com/cqIOQi6TFc
— FIFA World Cup Stats (@alimo_philip) December 3, 2022
Moving on to FIFA World Cups, both Messi nor Ronaldo hasn’t yet won the World Cup. The former Barcelona star has scored nine goals in the World Cup finals, while Cristiano Ronaldo has eight goals. Messi overtook Cristiano Ronaldo to become the player with the most Man-of-the-match awards, with eight man-of-the-match awards to his name.