Argentina and Chile tie in the Copa América debut

Yesterday, Argentina tied 1-1 to Chile at the Olímpico Nilton Santos stadium, the first time Messi has played there. Messi opened the score with a fantastic free-kick to the top left corner, but Vargas equalized after a rebound from a penalty. Messi's stats were: 1 goal, 3 SoT (7 in total), 3 dribbles, 4 key passes, 3 crosses, 2 long balls, 6 SCA, 29/36 passes, 6/12 duels won, 2 fouls won, 1 tackle, 5 recoveries, 10 pressures (1 successful) and 66 touches. Winning him the official MoTM of the game.

His ratings were:

SofaScore: 8.4

Fotmob: 8.5

FootballCritic: 8.1

Infogol: 10

Tigo Sports: 9.5

This was his heat map:

This was his performance on video:

Here are some fun facts after the game:

• With this goal, he has become the top scorer of free kicks in the national team, with 7 goals, surpassing Riquelme who had 6.
• Messi has surpassed Ronaldo in free-kick goals (57).
• Messi has surpassed Batistuta in the most official goals with the national team (39).
• Messi is now in 4th place for most games played in the Copa America (28), tied with Máximo Mosquera.
• Messi has reached 10 goals in the Copa América, leaving him in 15th place (tied with 9 more).
• Messi has played his 6th Copa América, tying Tesoriere's record with 6 as well.
• Messi played his first game and scored his 1st goal at the Olímpico Nilton Santos stadium.
• Messi received his 10th official MoTM award for the Copa América (awarded since 2011).
• Messi has scored his 30th goal with Argentina in neutral games.
• Messi has reached 30 goals this year.

Argentina's next game will be against Uruguay, a tough challenge for the albiceleste. Messi will also face Suárez once again. I hope you liked this entry, and as always, I'll see you in the next blog.