Lionel Messi made history Tuesday night in Kansas City. He scored a hat trick to lead Argentina to a 3-0 win over Algeria, and in doing so, he tied Miroslav Klose’s record for the most World Cup goals ever by a men’s player at 16.
The hat trick was Messi’s 11th for Argentina, but his first ever at a World Cup. He’s also now the oldest player to score three goals in a single World Cup match. When he came off late in the second half, the Argentina crowd at Arrowhead Stadium gave him a standing ovation.
This was Lionel Messi 200th appearance for Argentina. It was also his sixth World Cup – he’s the first player ever to do that. He beat Cristiano Ronaldo to the mark by one day. Ronaldo should play in his sixth World Cup on Wednesday, so Messi got to the milestone first.
Lionel Messi opened the scoring in the first half with a left-footed strike from just outside the box. He added two more in the second half to complete the hat trick. The goals came exactly 20 years after his World Cup debut against Serbia and Montenegro – he scored in that match too. He’s now the second player to score in five different World Cups.
After the game, Messi downplayed the record. “It’s an honor being up there alongside Klose and Ronaldo. But it doesn’t mean anything. Mbappé is there too, he scored twice today. At the end of the day, they are stats and nothing more. For me, Ronaldo, who I watched and is one of the greats, is not at the top. So, it’s just stats.”
There were some questions about Messi’s fitness coming into the tournament. He came off early in his last MLS match in May because of muscle fatigue. But he looked just fine on Tuesday.
Teammate Rodrigo De Paul said: “It’s an advantage to have Leo because of how he handles the group and pushes it forward. He doesn’t care about individual records. He prioritizes the group, and for us it’s incredible.”
Thousands of Argentina fans wearing his No. 10 jersey packed the stadium and the downtown watch parties. At one event, a live goat wearing an Argentina jersey was brought on stage – a playful nod to Messi being the GOAT. Hours later, he delivered.
Argentina are among four teams based in the Kansas City area for the tournament. They’ll play Austria next in Dallas on June 22, then wrap up group play against Jordan.
“The first matches of a World Cup are always tough, and we’re seeing that nobody’s giving anything away,” Messi said. “It’s a competitive World Cup with well-prepared national teams.”
Argentina vs Algeria: Defending Champions Open World Cup Campaign With Dominant 3-0 Victory
Lionel Messi tied the all-time goalscoring record as Argentina beat Algeria 3-0 to open their title defense.
The 38-year-old thought he’d scored in the eighth minute when he slotted home from close range, but the flag went up for offside. He didn’t have to wait long for the real thing. He ran at defenders and fired in from the edge of the box with his left foot. The shot was too powerful for Algeria keeper Luca Zidane – the son of French World Cup winner Zinedine Zidane.
Messi doubled the lead on the hour mark with a simple tap-in from a rebound after Alexis Mac Allister’s shot was spilled by the keeper. Then came the moment that was special even for a player who’s won just about everything. In the 76th minute, he drilled a low shot past the keeper from just outside the box. That put him level with former Germany striker Miroslav Klose on 16 World Cup goals.
He was substituted three minutes later and walked off to a standing ovation. He looked a bit disappointed to come off – probably being rested for Argentina’s push to become only the third team ever to defend a World Cup title.
Messi came into the tournament with some questions about his fitness. He’d picked up a minor hamstring injury in an end-of-season game for Inter Miami. But he looked fine in a tune-up against Iceland last week, playing 20 minutes and scoring a penalty. On Tuesday, he showed he was fully fit and ready to go.
His hat trick upstaged two other big stars who also had big games Tuesday. Kylian Mbappé scored twice in France’s 3-1 win over Senegal, moving him up to 14 World Cup goals. Erling Haaland also scored twice for Norway in their 4-1 win over Iraq. But Messi stole the headlines.
Argentina next face Austria on Monday. Jordan and Austria were set to open their Group J campaigns later Tuesday in San Francisco.
FAQs
Q. What record did Lionel Messi tie against Algeria?
A. Messi scored a hat trick and tied Miroslav Klose for the most World Cup goals.
Q. What did Messi say about tying the World Cup goals record?
A. Messi said it was an honor to be mentioned alongside great players.
Q. What does the win mean for Argentina?
A. Argentina earned three points in their opening match and will next face Austria.
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