Watch: When Argentina needed a saviour, Messi delivered

Lionel Messi isn't going to let Argentina go down without a fight, even if he has to do all the fighting on his own.

The Albiceleste went into Tuesday's World Cup qualifier away to Ecuador knowing that a victory was all but a necessity to reach next year's tournament in Russia. Things looked bleak when Ecuador opened the scoring, incredibly, after 38 seconds.

But the 30-year-old Messi, who has long been (unfairly) criticized for an inability to replicate his Barcelona performances on the international stage, took things into his own hands, scoring twice in quick succession.

His first tally came after some nice interplay with Angel Di Maria. For his second, only eight minutes later, the pint-sized magician unleashed a rocket into the roof of the net:

Order restored, at least for now.