Paris Saint-Germain superstar Lionel Messi scored in his first match since his 2022 World Cup victory, as his team recorded a 2-0 win over Angers in Ligue 1.

The 35-year-old had been granted a leave of absence after the tournament and missed games against Strasbourg and Lens.

Messi was also unavailable for the Coupe de France win over Chateroux.

However, the Argentina captain played the full 90 minutes of the match as PSG extended their lead at the top of Ligue 1 over second-placed Lens to six points.

Striker Hugo Ekitike opened the scoring before Messi doubled the home side’s lead.

It was Messi’s 13th goal in 20 matches this campaign.

It continues Messi’s phenomenal goal-scoring record from Barcelona, where he was the club’s record scorer with 672 goals in 778 appearances.

That means he has now scored 696 goals for Barcelona and PSG in his senior career, equaling the number of goals scored by Cristiano Ronaldo in Europe’s top five leagues.

Ronaldo netted 118 goals during his first stint at Manchester United before netting 450 goals in 438 appearances for Real Madrid, 101 goals over three seasons at Juventus, and 27 goals for United in his second spell at the club.

Ronaldo, however, scored five goals for Sporting CP, which means his club career total is 701—five ahead of long-term rival Messi, who is two years younger than him.