Germany great Gerd Mueller on Monday described Lionel Messi as a "giant" after the Argentine broke his calendar year goalscoring record that had stood for 40 years.

"My record of 85 goals in 60 matches, which stood since 1972, was beaten by the best player in the world, Lionel Messi, and I'm very happy for him," Mueller said, according to a spokesman for his former club, Bayern Munich.