Lionel Messi registere his 58th assist in international football, which is joint-most, as he equalled former United States’ star Landon Donovan’s tally.

Lionel Messi equalled another record in Argentina’s colours as he provided a match-winning assist to Lautaro Martinez in the FIFA World Cup South America qualifier against Peru. It was Messi’s 58th assist in international football, which is joint-most, as he equalled United States men’s national team legend Landon Donovan’s tally.

Messi floated in a cross from the left and Inter Milan’s Martinez leapt into the air, leaning back as he cracked a thundering left-footed volley past Pedro Gallese. It was not a very convincing performance from Argentina or Messi, but they managed to remain on top of the CONMEBOL standings, with their qualification for the 2026 tournament surely just a matter of time.

Argentina lead South American qualifying with 25 points from 12 matches, five points clear of its closest competitor, Uruguay. Ecuador and Colombia are next with 19 points each.

Messi’s former teammate and good friend Neymar is just right behind him with 57 assists in international football representing the Brazil national team. Meanwhile, his arch-rival Crstiano Ronaldo is way behind in the tally with 45 assists in the illustrious career but remains at the top of the goal-scoring charts with 135 goals in 215 appearances.

Meanwhile, with his astonishing strke Martinez has equalled legendary Diego Maradona’s tally of goals in international football. The Argentine great netted 32 goals during his illustrious career and Martinez matched it on Wednesday.

The Inter Milan striker opened up on his performance in Argentina’s last match of the year.

“I’m happy because my whole family came and I always want to give my best. This year was very positive and luckily we closed it with a victory,” Martinez told local TV.

He also talked about Argentina’s year, during which they won the Copa America title, adding another accolade to Messi’s illustrious legacy.

“It was a spectacular year in terms of performance, goals, games played. We have to keep playing and improving day by day.

“Everyone wants to beat us. Argentina’s national team are always the main characters. There are things to improve but we have to continue on this path,” he added.

Patrick Vieira has been appointed as the new boss of Serie A side Genoa.

The former Arsenal and France midfielder has agreed a deal to replace Alberto Gilardino as coach of the Italian club.

Genoa fired Gilardino on Tuesday after a poor start to the season which has left them just a point above the relegation zone.

They moved quickly for Vieira, who had a two-year spell in charge of Crystal Palace and has also managed New York City, Nice and, most recently, Strasbourg.

“Genoa CFC announces that it has entrusted the technical management of the first team to Patrick Vieira,” the club said in a statement.

The 48-year-old will be reunited with his former Manchester City team-mate Mario Balotelli, who left Nice while Vieira was the boss in 2019.

Vieira later admitted the controversial Italian striker was someone he found “difficult to work with”.

FIFA have officially confirmed the time and date for the upcoming World Cup qualifying draw for UEFA affiliated nations.

When is the World Cup draw for European nations?
FIFA officially confirmed on Tuesday that the draw for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers will take place on Friday December 13 at 11.00 GMT (12.00 CET).

How many nations compete and how many qualify
54 UEFA-affiliated nations will qualify for the 2026 World Cup, which is being co-hosted by three nations in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

As the 2026 World Cup will now feature 48 nations instead of the previous 32-team format, European nations will be competing for 16 places instead of 13 at the most recent World Cups.

How does qualifying work?
Though the tournament has expanded, the UEFA qualifying process has done the opposite.

This time around, teams will be divided into 12 groups of either four or five.

Each country will play each other twice; once at home and once away and will receive three points for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss, as usual.

The 12 group winners will automatically qualify for the final tournament. The 12 runners-up will enter a play-off route, along with the four best-ranked UEFA Nations League group winners who have not already qualified. Those 16 teams will then be whittled down to four, and those four will also qualify to the World Cup.

When are the first European qualifiers?
Teams drawn into groups of five will begin the qualification process during the next international break, which is currently scheduled for March 2025. Teams drawn into groups of four will begin in September.