Lionel Me si ended his World Cup goal drought in style for Argentina, with the mercurial Barcelona forward recording the 100th effort of Ru sia 2018.
Having cut a frustrated figure for the Albiceleste in their opening two Group D fixtures, the five-time Ballon dOr winner rediscovered his spark in a meeting with Nigeria.
Jorge Sampaolis side needed inspiration from Ken Griffey Jersey somewhere, having gone into the game with just Brandon Brennan Jersey one point to their name, and saw their talismanic No. 10 duly deliver.
There were just 14 minutes on the clock when Me si collected a floated pa s over the top of the Nigerian defence from Ever Banega.
A perfectly-timed run was followed by two deft touches which worked the ball onto his le s favoured right foot.
With a clear sight of the target there was only likely to be one outcome, and Me si crashed home the opening goal of a must-win contest for Argentina.
In doing so, the 31-year-old took the total number of goals at the finals to 100.
He also got himself off the mark at an event which has seen eternal rival Cristiano Ronaldo already notch four times J.P. Crawford Jersey for Portugal.
100 - Lionel Me si has scored the 100th goal at the 2018 World Cup. Permanent.
Jean Segura Jersey OptaJoe (@OptaJoe)
Me si needed a goal as much for his own confidence as he did for Argentinas.
He has not always had the rub of the green when representing his country, with international heartache having been all too frequent.
The Golden Ball was secured at the 2014 World Cup, but final heartbreak was suffered and Me si failed to find the target in any of his outings at the knockout Gerson Bautista Jersey stage.
Ironically, his last goal of that competition came against Nigeria in the final round of group stage fixtures.
662 - Lionel Me si has scored his first World Cup goal in 662 minutes of football, his last previous World Cup goal came against Nigeria as well, in 2014. Relief.
OptaJohan (@OptaJohan)
In addition, Me si's goal also ensured he became the first player to score in a World Cup finals as a teenager, in his 20s and 30s.
With a goal-laden World Cup having produced plenty of excitement so far, there is the promise Kyle Seager Jersey of plenty more to come as attention starts to shift towards the last 16 and the pursuit of the ultimate crown.
Related Articles