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Kansas City, Mo. — Lionel Messi utilized the beforehand of his white-and-blue, sweat-soaked jersey to hitch the tears from his eyes, a flood of emotions cracking his usually calm, assured demeanor aft helium gave Argentina an aboriginal pb successful its 2026 Men's World Cup opener against Algeria.
Then helium scored again. And again.
Suddenly, immoderate questions astir Messi's hamstring injury, oregon whether helium could assistance Argentina go the 3rd squad to triumph consecutive World Cups - adjacent arsenic his 39th day approaches adjacent week - had been answered. With a superb chapeau instrumentality successful a 3-0 triumph implicit Les Fennecs, Messi moved into a necktie with Germany's Miroslav Klose for the vocation scoring grounds astatine the Men's World Cup.
Lionel Messi. right, celebrates the 3rd extremity successful his archetypal World Cup chapeau instrumentality with Argentina teammate Rodrigo De Paul successful Kansas City Stadium connected June 16, 2026.
Tom Weller / representation confederation via Getty Images
"My tears aft the archetypal goal? I've had immoderate pugnacious days. It wasn't related to football. And those feelings were due to the fact that of that," Messi said afterward, without elaborating. "I convey my teammates, the coaching unit and the delegation for helping me."
Messi scored that affectional archetypal extremity successful the opening minutes connected a nifty provender from Inter Miami teammate Rodrigo De Paul, the 2nd disconnected an opportunistic rebound aboriginal successful the 2nd half, and the 3rd connected a crisp onslaught moments earlier subbing retired to a lasting ovation from a assemblage of 69,045 tilted heavy toward the three-time World Cup champions.
"At a nonaccomplishment for words astir Leo. What tin I say?" Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni said. "He's incredible."
Messi records abound
His unthinkable trio of goals came 20 years to the time that Messi made his World Cup debut successful a lucifer against Serbia and Montenegro - helium scored successful that one, excessively - and made the pridefulness of Rosario lone the 2nd subordinate to people successful 5 editions of the men's tournament.
Messi has 16 goals successful his grounds six World Cup appearances overall, and it seems inevitable that Klose's grounds volition autumn successful the coming weeks. The chapeau instrumentality was the 61st of Messi's career, his 11th portion playing successful his nationalist squad colors and his archetypal successful the World Cup.
It besides was the 5th consecutive World Cup crippled successful which Messi has scored.
"It makes maine precise blessed to person lived done everything that came my way. What I'm surviving though present is the cherry connected top," Messi said. "I'm precise blessed an grateful for this fantastic group. I bask it truthful much."
Messi upstaged 2 of soccer's different stars - Kylian Mbappé of France and Erling Haaland of Norway - who had large games of their ain connected Tuesday. Mbappé scored doubly successful France's 3-1 triumph implicit Senegal to determination into a necktie for 4th connected the men's World Cup goals database with 14, portion Haaland scored doubly for Norway successful its 4-1 triumph implicit Iraq.
"Messi is simply a madman," Haaland said successful a station connected Snapchat during Argentina's game.
Messi had been dealing with a insignificant hamstring wounded with Inter Miami that slowed him successful the lead-up to the World Cup. But the eight-time victor of the Ballon d'Or, which honors planetary soccer's champion player, had nary problems successful a tuneup past week with Iceland, scoring connected a punishment footwear portion playing 20 minutes successful a crisp performance.
A vocation marked by greatness — and longevity
"This is my sixth World Cup, and I inactive consciousness similar I'm successful bully shape," Messi said. "Fortunately, I'm doing well, and contiguous we managed to triumph a pugnacious match. It's important to commencement the tourney with a triumph successful the archetypal game, arsenic that's ne'er casual successful a World Cup."
Messi's quality against Algeria was the 200th of his planetary career, which began successful 2005 astatine property of 18. The lone players with much are Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, who volition play his 229th connected Wednesday, and Bader al-Mutawa, who played successful 202 for Kuwait.
Messi and Ronaldo are the lone men to person scored successful 5 World Cups.
"Class is permanent," Algeria manager Vladimir Petkovic said. "He's fortunate to person the privilege that the full Argentina squad works for him, and supports him, and for a fig of years present - decades - he's done unthinkable things."
Argentina is among 4 nationalist teams making their basal camps successful the Kansas City metro. And overmuch arsenic it has the remainder of the world, Messi-mania has swept done the country ever since La Albiceleste's accomplishment successful the Heartland astir 2 weeks ago.
On lucifer day, thousands of fans wearing his No. 10 jersey trekked into the location of the NFL's Chiefs connected the outskirts of Kansas City, singing odes to their hero. Meanwhile, during a ticker enactment astatine the downtown Power & Light District, a goat accompanied by erstwhile NFL quarterback-turned Fox broadcaster Jameis Winston came connected signifier wearing an Argentina jersey.
The humorous infinitesimal seemed to person foreshadowed a large nighttime for Messi erstwhile helium scored an hr later, and the statement that he's soccer's GOAT - the top of each clip - is becoming nary statement astatine each with each lucifer helium plays.
"It's an vantage to person Leo due to the fact that of however helium handles the radical and pushes it forward. Because of who helium is," De Paul said. "He doesn't attraction astir idiosyncratic records. He prioritizes the group, and for america it's incredible."
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