Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi

As Lionel Messi scored his 800th career goal with a beautiful free-kick in Argentina’s friendly win over Panama on Thursday night, fans showered the legendary with praises. World champions Argentina made their first appearance on the field since defeating France in the World Cup final in December in a friendly clash against Panama at the El Monumental Stadium.

The hosts were scoreless in the opening period, but goals from Thiago Almada (78′) and Messi (89′) assured an easy 2-0 victory. For the game in Argentina, the La Albiceleste manager Lionel Scaloni chose a formidable XI, with captain Lionel Messi unsurprisingly stealing the show with an impressive performance. He hit two free kicks on the post before hitting the bullseye on his third attempt.

Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi celebrates his 800t career goal with Argentina teammates. Credits: Twitter

Fans laud Lionel Messi for bringing up 800th career goal in style

Lionel Messi took his time before converting a curling free-kick from a position just outside the penalty box. He dodged the wall and placed the ball in the top corner. With this goal, Lionel Messi has now scored 800 goals in 1,073 games for both his club and country. Fans of of the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner were overjoyed to watch their hero hit the milestone in style and enthusiastically praised him on Twitter. They responded to his heroics as follows: