Argentina's national football team hosted Estonia for a friendly match after winning the La Finalissima 2022 by defeating Italy 3-0. They crushed the visitors 5-0 at home, with Lionel Messi scoring all five goals. Everyone was startled by Messi's five goals against Estonia, but this is not the first time a South American footballer has scored five goals in an international contest. A number of players from the region have previously scored five or more goals in a single international match. Argentine footballers have topped this list of achievements. Let's take a look at the South American players who have scored at least five goals in a single match.

South American Players who have Scored Five Goals in a Single International Game

South American football has produced a plethora of talented players. Some are regarded as the greatest of all time. The present sensation, Lionel Messi, is one of them. Argentina's Messi made headlines again after scoring five goals against Estonia. There is a lot of discussion in the football world regarding which players have previously accomplished this feat. Let's take a look at which South American players have scored five or more goals in a single international encounter.

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Argentina

Six Argentine players have scored five or more goals in a single international match. G Unate, Antonio Valentin Angelillo, Daniel Killer, JM Marvezzi, Jose Manuel Moreno, and Lionel Messi are the players that have achieved this feat. Interestingly, only Argentina players have scored five or more goals in a match at the international level on multiple occasions.

Argentina’s hat-trick scorers (5+ goals)

   Source: https://www.11v11.com/

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Brazil 

Evaristo is the first Brazilian player to score five goals in a single international match. He scored five goals against Colombia on March 24, 1957, in a Copa America tournament.

Chile

Ivan Zamorano is the first Chilean player to score five goals in an international game. On April 29th, 1997, he scored five goals against Venezuela in a FIFA World Cup 1998 qualifying match.

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Peru

On March 23, 1952, Valeriano Lopez scored five goals for Peru in a Panamerican Championship match against Panama.

Uruguay 

Hector Pedro Scarone scored five goals for Uruguay in a South American Championship match against Bolivia on October 28, 1926.

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Bottom Line

Scoring five goals in a game takes a specific kind of effort. Therefore, the players who have accomplished this feat are truly exceptional. Lionel Messi is the most recent footballer to do it, scoring five goals into Estonia's goal post. Previously, ten South American players had scored five or more goals in ten different matches.