Messi leads Argentina to World Cup

Argentina 3-3 France (4-2 on pens): Lionel Messi leads Argentina to World Cup glory despite Kylian Mbappe hat-trick

Lionel Messi led Argentina to a stunning World Cup victory, beating defending champions France 4-2 on penalties after an enthralling 3-3 draw over 120 minutes.

In a game that will go down in history as one of the greats, France twice came from behind to send the game to penalties. Although Messi will take the headlines, Kylian Mbappe was the first player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup final since Sir Geoff Hurst for England in 1966.

But Kinsgley Coman and Aurelien Tchouameni both missed their spot kicks for France as Argentina scored each of their remaining three, with Montiel firing home the winning penalty to win the 2022 World Cup.

When asked about Messi, Scaloni added: “First of all, we need to save him a spot for the next World Cup in 2026 if he wants to keep playing. If he wants to keep playing, he’ll be with us.

Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez says he remained calm during the penalty shootout as he helped his country to World Cup victory.

“It was a game where we suffered,” he said. “Two poor shots and they levelled. They give them another penalty, they scored. Thank God later I did my thing, what I dreamed of.

Player of the match – Kylian Mbappe
It’s hard to believe that Mbappe is just 23. He has already featured at two World Cup finals and his hat-trick on Sunday was the first treble in a final in 56 years. Mbappe could not have done more to win it for his country, but does come away with the tournament’s Golden Boot.

Argentina’s Lionel Messi became the first player in World Cup history to score in the group stage, round of 16, quarter-final, semi-final and final in a single edition of the tournament.

Argentina’s Lionel Messi made his 26th appearance in a World Cup match, becoming the all-time record holder for most games played at the tournament, overtaking Lothar Matthaus (25).

Messi leads Argentina to World Cup

Lionel Messi has scored 26 goals in major international tournaments for Argentina (13 World Cup, 13 Copa América), the most of any South American player in history across the two competitions, overtaking Ronaldo (25).

In France’s Kylian Mbappe and Argentina’s Lionel Messi, this was the first ever World Cup final to see both teams have a player score at least twice.

Mbappe himself was only the second ever hat-trick scorer in a World Cup final, after England’s Geoff Hurst in 1966.