Lionel Messi matches Pele with staggering goal record

Lionel Messi continued his record breaking over in the United States this week by scoring once again for his new team Inter Miami.

Can you really say the greatest footballer who's ever lived has taken the States by storm? Has he really? The Argentine's lightning-quick start for Inter Miami has hardly come as a surprise for the rest of the footballing world.

It's not even been a year since Messi was befuddling the world's best defenders on the biggest stage as he completed a World Cup fairytale in Qatar. He remains the most magical footballer on the planet, and has proven in his short time in North America that he has so much more to give at the elite level.

His Inter Miami career has started with eight goals in five games. The Argentine's influence has transformed the Herons into a competent unit, and a Leagues Cup semi-final awaits. Messi's strike which capped off his side's 4-0 win over FC Charlotte may have initially appeared routine, but it was actually a historically significant goal.

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Lionel Messi becomes fifth player in history to score 100+ goals in three decades

Goals scored by the decade

Messi's finish against Charlotte was his 100th of the 2020s which means he has become just the fifth player in history to score 100+ goals in three different decades.

His most recent strike was the 815th of his career, and he is slowly edging closer to Cristiano Ronaldo (844) at the top of the all-time scoring charts.

His 100th strike of the current decade (which takes into account all competitive goals for club and country) meant he joined an esteemed list of icons whose lengthy but majestic careers allowed their goalscoring to span into three decades. Real Madrid legends Alfredo Di Stefano and Ferenc Puskas each reached 100 goals in the 40s, 50s and 60s, with the latter's career haul reaching 724. Di Stefano, who also excelled as a playmaker, scored 531 career goals.

Those two were soon joined by the almighty Pele, who just about sneaks into this list after scoring merely 100 in the 70s. The majority of the Brazilian's stellar work arrived in the 60s when he scored a remarkable 437 times which included 50 goals for the national team.

Romario then became the fourth as his career spanned into the 21st century following a devastating 90s pomp at PSV and Barcelona. The Brazilian striker scored 402 goals in the 90s before a return to Brazil ensured his scoring tally remained supreme in the 2000s. Some of the best seasons of his prolonged career arrived in his 30s.

And now, Messi has joined the list. He's bound to add a whole lot more to his current tally for the 2020s, with the Argentine perhaps aiming to top the 169 goals he scored in the noughties. Matching the 546 he scored in the 2010s might be just beyond him now.

Lionel Messi's scoring breakdown

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