Tuesday was definitely not a dull day for Argentina superfans because Lionel Messi has done it again- turned Fifa’s international football stage into his own theatre of brilliance, showing why he would always be the GOAT.
He scored a hat-trick (again, his first ever hat-trick in a Fifa World Cup) in Argentina's commanding 3-0 victory over Algeria to draw level with Germany legend Miroslav Klose as the highest goal scorer in Fifa World Cup history. While players spend their entire career trying to achieve some record, Messi probably woke up and decided he would make a spree for it in just one day.
The Argentina captain achieved an astounding 16 World Cup goals, after dropping a hat-trick, bringing himself in close tie with Miroslav Klose, who till now had enjoyed the title alone. A masterclass match that left Algeria struggling and fans on their toes.
Miroslav Klose’s last Fifa World Cup was the 2014 tournament in Brazil, where he delivered two goals in the entirety of the World Cup frenzy and won the championship with Germany. He scored 16 goals in 24 appearances across four tournaments (2002, 2006, 2010, and 2014).
After Messi and Klose is Brazil's Ronaldo Nazário, who scored 15 goals in the Fifa World Cup across four tournaments (1994, 1998, 2002, and 2006).
Messi opened his hat-trick scoring in the 17th minute when he collected a brilliant through ball from Rodrigo De Paul. Surging forward, he unleashed his first successful goal almost 25 yards away that beat and slipped through the fingers of goalkeeper Luca Zidane, who is French football legend Zinedine Zidane’s son.
Messi’s first goal set the tone for another memorable evening from the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner.
He scored his second in the 60th minute moments after 27-year old Alexis MacAllister tested the goalkeeper with a low effort from a distance and Messi took a chance right after Zidane spilled the ball. One step closer to Argentina winning, Messi scoring a hat-trick and making history.
"There are no words to describe it," Mac Allister said of Messi's enduring brilliance.
"I think if anyone thought this team was better without Leo, today it became clear that Leo is the most important player of all. And that we have to build a team around him, where he feels comfortable.”
While Algeria briefly breathed a sigh of relief when Zidane produced a superb save to deny Messi his third goal moments later, it lasted only a few moments.
In the 76th minute, substitute Nico Gonzalez assisted in laying the ball into Messi's path. And the veteran did it- scored his hat-trick, adding another chapter to his already unparalleled World Cup career that witnessed his 200th Argentina appearance this year.
And now, with 16 World Cup goals to his name, the ‘La Pulga Atómica’ stands shoulder to shoulder with Klose at the summit of football's most prestigious scoring list.
