Lionel Messi converted a penalty and had a hand in the other two goals by young forward Julian Alvarez. Both superstars shined as Argentina defeated Croatia on Wednesday to set up a meeting with either France or Morocco in Sunday's FIFA World Cup 2022 final. It will be Messi's second World Cup final. He and his side would surely remember the 2014 final lost against Germany and they would be in 'redemption' mode for this Sunday's final. This could surely be Messi's last World Cup and he will do everything possible to get his hands on that beautiful golden trophy. Records were broken and equalled with many waiting to be broken in Sunday's final clash as well. Here we bring you the records that Lionel Messi broke after Argentina defeated Croatia in the semifinals.
FIFA World Cup 2022: Records Lionel Messi equalled and broke
- Leo Messi is now the top scorer for Argentina in the FIFA World Cup history.
- The seven-time Ballon d'Or holder has equalled Germany's Lothar Mattheus record of most appearances in a FIFA World Cup (25 appearances)
- Messi has also equalled Diego Maradona's number of assists in FIFA World Cup history for Argentina.
- Messi was handed his fourth player of the match award in Qatar, which adds to his six awards before, making him the player with most player of the match awards in FIFA World Cup history.
Messi: "A lot of things are going through my head. Very excited to see all this. We have experienced something incredible during the whole World Cup. Now there is only one game to go." pic.twitter.com/UG1IlHSCIc
— Barça Universal (@BarcaUniversal) December 13, 2022
Lionel Andrés Messi. 11 total goals at World Cup in his entire career. #Qatar2022
Messi becomes Argentina’s all-time top goalscorer in FIFA World Cup history. pic.twitter.com/wPmDez4gf6
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) December 13, 2022
Those dark days after losing to Saudi Arabia in its opening group match seem so long ago now for Argentina, which will be hard to stop in the final with Messi playing this well. (CONTROVERSY on penalty decision, Fans left furious, check here)
"Even though we lost our first match, we were confident that this group was going to push forward," Messi said. "We know what we are, and we called on the fans to believe in us."
Messi is thrilling his legion of fans along the way, with his swivel and driving run to set up the third goal for Alvarez in the 69th minute epitomizing his confidence and swagger. He is embracing the responsibility of leading Argentina to its third World Cup title, scoring in five of his six games in Qatar. He even had a penalty saved in the game in which he didn't score.
Croatia failed in its bid to reach a second straight World Cup final after conceding two goals in a five-minute span from the 34th, just when the team was looking comfortable at Lusail Stadium. Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni was in tears after the final whistle, even though the celebrations in general were much calmer than after previous games. Messi was in the middle of them all as he continues perhaps his best ever World Cup. (With PTI inputs)
