Messi grabs hat-trick in taxing circumstances

Argentina danced a tango in Guatemala, beating the home side 4-0 in a friendly match played at the Mateo Flores national stadium. Messi put his tax problems to one side and scored three goals.

The forward has now scored 35 times for his country, overtaking Diego Maradona (34). "That's not important," Messi said after the match.

In a game which the Argentines considered more of an "exhibition" than a competitive match, the 'Albiceste' gave a footballing masterclass to an opponent that simply could not contain the quality football served up by Alejandro Sabella's team.

Messi opened the scoring in the 15th minute with a left-footed shot which sparked euphoria amongst the more than 26,000 Guatemalan fans who, despite seeing their team go a goal down, celebrated as though they had scored.

Argentina's second came in the 35th minute when Augusto Fernández headed home from a Messi pass.

Five minutes later, the Barcelona man was brought down inside the area and Honduran referee, Armando Castro, pointed straight to the spot. Messi fired his second goal past Ricardo Jerez with ease.

Argentina's number 10 completed his exhibition with a stunning 48th-minute left-footed shot which again beat Jerez, making it 4-0.

Guatemala's only chance to score came from striker Marco Pablo Pappa in the 52nd minute, but his attempt was disallowed for offside.