After a delayed start, who else but Messi would have the game’s first shot on target after seven minutes? The match official then stopped the clock at 10 minutes so that the man of the moment could receive extended applause from the crowd.
Benin certainly weren’t overawed by the atmosphere or the opponent, with both Aiyegun Tosin and Junior Olaitan passing up great chances to give the visitors a shock lead shortly after.
Messi was crowded out each time he received the ball in a dangerous area, his teammates telegraphing their passes to him, which therefore made it easy for the opposition to defend. Messi did manage to test Benin goalkeeper Marcel Dandjinou with a trademark curling free kick midway through the first half, and his volley from Lautaro Martinez’s far post cross came agonisingly close to opening the scoring.
Nothing was coming off for Argentina, whilst Emi Martinez had to make two saves late in the half to ensure the match was still goalless at the break.
Within three minutes of the start of the second half, Messi swung in a corner for Nicolas Otamendi to open the scoring with a stunning airborne volley, giving La Pulga a 69th assist for the national team. He added a 70th when setting up Nico Paz, who’d only been on the pitch for just over a minute, the youngster’s curling effort giving Dandjinou no chance.
After Agustin Giay had been wiped out in the area by Tamimou Ouorou, Messi smashed home the penalty into the top corner to spark wild celebrations.
With the goal gaping, Messi then missed a sitter. The remainder of the game was played at walking pace, and the result means that La Albiceleste’s unbeaten run on home soil is now up to 11 games (W10, D1), with their last defeat coming back in November 2023.
Benin, incredibly, haven’t played at home themselves since June 2023, but the loss was just their second in their last seven internationals (W3, D2).
Flashscore Man of the Match: Lionel Messi (Argentina)