CSKA Moscow goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev has surpassed the famous Argentinian Lionel Messi in the number of matches played for a single team. According to the portal "Chempionat," the Russian Premier League match against Dynamo Makhachkala was Akinfeev's 779th appearance for CSKA. The goalkeeper has won the UEFA Cup with the Army Men, been a six-time Russian champion, a seven-time Russian Cup winner, and a seven-time Russian Super Cup winner. For Lionel Messi, the main team in his career was Spain's Barcelona. Messi played a total of 778 matches for the Catalan club — now one less than Akinfeev has played for CSKA. Of course, Akinfeev's titles may not compare to Messi's, but for Russia, the goalkeeper's career is exceptional. In the match where Akinfeev surpassed Messi, CSKA won 1-0 away thanks to a goal from Tamerlan Musaev. According to CSKA's official website, the game in Makhachkala was Akinfeev's 370th "clean sheet" in his career. He has kept 322 of those for CSKA, with another 48 for the Russian national team. In this category, the goalkeeper has no rivals in Russia, and none are expected to emerge. Interestingly, this is Akinfeev's 10th anniversary season, where in the first 12 matches, he has kept at least half of them with clean sheets. For the past four years, Akinfeev has held the title of Europe's most loyal footballer. His tenure with CSKA's main squad is nearing 22 years — his first appearance for the red and blue team was in the spring of 2003. There are no other elite division teams in Europe with a player of such longevity. Akinfeev's current contract runs until the summer of 2026, when the goalkeeper will celebrate his 40th birthday. The "Republic's goalkeeper" continues to move toward yet another fantastic milestone — 800 matches for a single club. And there is confidence that he will cross this barrier.