Lionel Messi hit the back of the net in a 5-0 victory over Zambia at Estadio Alberto Jose Armando in what is potentially his last match on home soil.

Argentina's final match in front of their fans before they prepare to defend their World Cup title was an emotional affair, with another goodbye also taking place.

Messi, who came off the bench at half-time in Argentina's 2-1 win over Mauritania last week, took little time to settle in on his first international start of the year.

It was his pass into Julian Alvarez that got the scoring started in the fourth minute – though credit for the assist went to Thiago Almada – with the Atletico Madrid striker putting the hosts in front.

Messi then got their second two minutes before half-time, gliding past the Zambia defenders in the box before firing across Willard Mwanza into the bottom corner.

Almada then won a penalty three minutes into the second half, and Messi handed the ball to Nicolas Otamendi, who was making his final home appearance before retiring after the World Cup. The defender coolly slotted into the left side of the net.

Kingstone Mutandwa then forced Emiliano Martinez into a sharp stop as Zambia attempted to pull one back, but a Dominic Chanda own goal then put the contest beyond them.

Valentin then rounded off the scoring in second-half stoppage time, profiting from some loose defending to sweep home his first goal for Argentina.

Data Debrief: Messi shines in five-star showing

There is no doubt Messi would play an important role, and he was at the forefront of Argentina's performance.

He had the most shots (three), touches in the opposition box (seven), passes in the final third (37), completed the most dribbles (5/11) and contested the most duels (15), with only Cristian Romero (seven) winning more than his six.

Argentina dominated throughout, though it was not necessarily reflected in front of goal, with only nine attempts worth 1.63 expected goals (xG), but they limited Zambia to just one shot on target in a comfortable outing.