I don't think about statistics: Messi

Lionel Messi said he took little notice of statistics after discovering he had become the sixth youngest goalscorer in the history of the World Cup and the youngest Argentine to play in the tournament.

The gifted forward, who turns 19 on June 24, marked his World Cup debut with the last goal in Argentina's 6-0 rout of Serbia & Montenegro in Gelsenkirchen on Friday, a Group C victory that put the South Americans in the second round.

"Sincerely, I don't think about [statistics]," Messi told reporters on Saturday. "I'm happy that I played, for myself, but I don't think about those things.

"I was lucky to make my World Cup debut and on top of that score a goal."

Pele is the youngest World Cup scorer of all time, the great Brazilian having netted at the age of 17 years and 239 days.

The previous youngest Argentine to play in the tournament was Roberto Luis Iraneta, who was 19 when his side lost to Sweden 3-2 in May 1934.

EIGHTH CAP

Messi, the best player at last year's World Youth Cup won by Argentina in Netherlands, won his eighth senior cap on Friday and scored his second international goal.

He said he is pleased to get off the mark at the tournament after sitting out Argentina's opening 2-1 win over Ivory Coast in Hamburg a week ago.

"It was in a World Cup I got to play my first official [competitive] match since my injury," Messi said referring to the pulled thigh muscle he suffered with Barcelona three months ago.

There had been much talk in the Argentine media since the start of the World Cup about when coach Jose Pekerman would let Messi off the leash.

"When I went on [Pekerman] asked me to play up front, moving about with Carlos [Tevez] and Hernan [Crespo]," he said.

Twice former champions Argentina were 3-0 up when Messi came on for the last 15 minutes of a match they completely dominated. They scored three more goals with Messi on the field and he played a part in all three, ending with his own in the 88th.

"The truth is we had a great match but we still haven't achieved anything," said Messi.

"We have to keep improving things to play better each day because we're going to get much more complicated matches which, if you lose, you go back home."