KANSAS CITY: Lionel Messi saluted a “beautiful moment” after becoming the World Cup’s joint all-time leading goalscorer in his record-breaking sixth finals appearance on Tuesday.
The 38-year-old Argentina captain etched another memorable chapter in his glittering career with a brilliant hat-trick in the South Americans’ 3-0 win over Algeria at Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium.
Messi’s hat-trick — his first ever in the World Cup — vaulted him alongside Germany’s Miroslav Klose as the top scorer in the tournament’s history with 16 goals.
“To enjoy this with my family, with my team-mates, the ones who are always there, is a really beautiful moment,” Inter Miami star Messi said afterwards.
Messi’s razor-sharp eye for goal augurs well for Argentina’s hopes of becoming the first team since Brazil in 1962 to win back-to-back World Cup titles.
“The squad, it’s a very united, very strong group,” Messi said.
“I feel good; we were lucky enough to win a tough match. It’s important to start off with a win in the first game. “I’m grateful to the fans, because once again they’ve shown that Argentina is crazy about this — we packed the stadium again.”
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni meanwhile said he no longer has “the words to describe Messi.”
“For 20 years, he’s had us used to seeing things like this, and he inspires everyone who watches him play,” Scaloni said of Messi’s performance.
Scaloni is now targeting Argentina’s second Group ‘J’ game against Austria on Monday as the South Americans look to lock up their place in the knockout rounds.
“We’re going to take it one game at a time. The team is happy; we gave playing time to a lot of players,” Scaloni said. “Hopefully we can win the next one so everyone can be in the third group stage match.”
On a magical night at 69,045-capacity Arrowhead Stadium, Messi delivered an electrifying individual.
The 38-year-old had started an unforgettable occasion — his 200th international appearance — by claiming a piece of history, becoming the first man to play in six World Cups as he led Argentina onto the field for what would become a one-sided clash.
Messi, who first played in the World Cup as a teenager during the 2006 finals in Germany, then emphatically stamped his class on proceedings with a memorable hat-trick.
A 17th minute curling strike took his World Cup goals tally to 14, putting him alongside German legend Gerd Muller and France superstar Kylian Mbappe in the all-time rankings.
He then moved one clear of Muller and Mbappe to join Brazilian great Ronaldo on 15 goals in the 60th minute after pouncing on a rebound from an Alexis Mac Allister shot to make it 2-0.
He went equal with Germany’s Klose on 16 goals in the 76th minute, sweeping in a low finish from the edge of the area before departing to a standing ovation from an adoring crowd four minutes later.
An emotional Messi was wiping his tears with his shirt after scoring Argentina’s first goal. Messi said he was crying for a personal reason unrelated to the sport.
“Why did I cry? It was something completely unrelated to football. I went through some difficult days,” said Messi. “But I’m grateful to the entire delegation and my team-mates because they were always by my side, giving me a lot of strength to help me get through it.”
Messi later also played down the significance of his milestone scoring feat.
“It’s an honor to be there, given what it means to stand alongside Klose or the others — Ronaldo is there too — but I don’t think it means anything,” Messi said. “In the end, it’s just a statistic and nothing more.”
Published in Dawn, June 18th, 2026
