It was an
enthralling FIFA World Cup 2022 finale between Argentina and France. The Lionel
Messi-led team was ahead by 2-0 until the first half of the game. However, France
darted two quick goals to force extra time after the designated 90 minutes.
After Messi
managed to score the third goal, it all seemed to be done and dusted. Nevertheless,
Kylian Mbappe completed his hat-trick of goals in the final to make the
equation 3-3 until the completion of extra time.
In the penalty
shoot-outs, Argentina managed to beat France 4-2 to claim their World Cup title.
It was certainly the biggest moment for legendary Messi, who played the last WC
of his career. Here are five records, which Messi broke at the FIFA World Cup
2022.
5 Most
goals for Argentina in FIFA WC history
The
seven-time Ballon d’Or winner became the Argentinian player with the most goals
in the history of the showpiece event. He achieved this feat in the semi-final against Croatia while converting a penalty. With his fifth goal of the 2022
edition, Messi eclipsed Gabriel Batistuta, who had 10 goals in his WC career.
The PSG
star hit two goals in the final against France, and now has a total of 13 goals
in the FIFA WC history.
4 First
player to score in every round
With his magical performance in the final against France, Messi now holds the record of being the first player to score in the group stage, Round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals and finals. He finished with seven goals in the 2022 edition.
Interestingly,
the 35-year-old had not scored any goals in the knockout rounds ahead of this
edition. However, he conquered this miraculous feat in his final WC, helping
his team to win the title.
3. Oldest
and youngest player to score and assist in WC game
In a unique feat, Messi is now the oldest and youngest to score and assist a goal in FIFA WC history. Ahead of this year’s WC, he held the record for being the youngest to conquer this achievement, when he did it in the 2006 edition against Serbia, aged 18yrs & 357 days.
In the 2022
WC, Messi registered a goal and assist in the quarter-finals against the Netherlands,
aged 35yrs & 168 days.
2. Most
minutes played in World Cup history
The Argentina star clasped another momentous record of playing the most minutes in FIFA WC history. Defying his age and displaying his impressive fitness, Messi played every minute of the Qatar edition. Ahead of the finals, he was 23 minutes short of Italian defender Paolo Maldini’s record of 2216 minutes.
Featuring
in the final against France, Messi has now played close to 2300 minutes in the
FIFA World Cup.
1. Most
appearances in World Cup history
A mere presence in the FIFA WC final paved way for Messi to clinch a record for most appearances in the World Cups. He eclipsed Germany’s Lothar Matthaus (25) to now feature in 26 international matches in the showpiece event.
Playing in
the World Cups since the 2006 edition, Messi has played 19 matches as a captain.
In this pursuit, he beat Rafa Marquez (17) and Diego Maradona (16).