‘I am proud to have Messi as a player’ – Lionel Scaloni

Argentina captain

Lionel Messi

netted a hat trick to give his side a 3-0 victory over

Bolivia

in a World Cup qualifier on Thursday, surpassing

Pele

as South America’s top international scorer with 79 goals.

The

star broke the deadlock after 14 minutes in Buenos Aires with a curling strike from outside the box.

He grabbed his brace in the 64th minute after working a one-two with

Lautaro Martinez

, then completed the hat trick with two minutes left, sending the ball into the back of the net on a rebound from close range.

His 77th, 78th, and 79th goals marked his seventh hat trick for the national side and lifted him two above Pele on the South American scoring charts

Scaloni

hailed the former

striker for continuing to prove decisive for his country following his latest treble.

"I am proud to have him as a player. Messi is leaving a legacy to all the soccer players of the national team,"

Scaloni said at his post-match news conference

.

"Messi was always a player who made a difference. Before and now. Winning magnified everything, and if before he was already an idol of the people, now it is much more.

"Seeing them excited fills us with joy, but it lasts [only] until this international window is over, because afterwards we have to continue working."

Messi's seventh hat-trick for Argentina helped his country extend their unbeaten run to 22 matches.

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