By Michael Church
DALLAS, June 27 (Reuters) - Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said he is running out of ways to describe the performances of Lionel Messi after seeing his captain become the first player to score in seven consecutive World Cup matches in their 3-1 win over Jordan on Saturday.
Messi was introduced from the bench on the hour mark at Dallas Stadium and netted an 80th-minute free kick to continue a scoring run that saw him surpass the mark he shared with France's Just Fontaine and Brazilian
Jairzinho.
"It's a little bit of an uncomfortable situation when people ask me that and I don't know what to say," Scaloni said when quizzed once again about Messi's performance.
"Today he could've played 90 minutes and, without undermining our opponent, he wanted his team mates to have time on the pitch and to save himself for what's coming up.
"He doesn't think so much about the numbers that people are talking about. The only word that comes to mind is that I'm surprised."
Messi's strike put the seal on a largely comfortable win for the champions, who took a two-goal lead into the interval following a Giovani Lo Celso free kick and a penalty from Lautaro Martinez.
Those goals were the first not scored by Messi for Argentina at the current World Cup, before the 39-year-old took his total to a tournament-leading six.
Scaloni had made nine changes to his starting line-up and he was pleased with the performances of those who had featured little in the tournament so far.
"It's a very positive opinion that I have, especially as I was able to include all the players, this was a goal we always set for ourselves," he said.
"I believe all of them deserve to enjoy coming to a World Cup and playing at a World Cup and we were able to give them minutes. I think they played quite well in a difficult match.
"They showed me today that I can count on them."
Argentina next take on Cape Verde in the round of 32 in Miami and Scaloni said he would not underestimate the debutants.
"Based on what I've seen, I'm not surprised," he said of their progress to the knockout rounds. "They're a good team, they have made it very difficult for the three opponents they have played.
"Spain couldn't beat them, Uruguay couldn't either. They're a fast team, they play well with a high calibre of play. I can guarantee you they're a team that's going to make it difficult for us."
(Reporting by Michael Church, Editing by Peter Rutherford)
