Lionel Messi continued his continuous cycle of breaking records by scoring a goal in the eighth World Cup match. The captain of Argentina strengthened his achievements within the tournament.
Match results against Cape Verde
In a tense match against Cape Verde, held on Saturday, Argentina won 3-2 after extra time, securing their place in the top 16 teams (Round of 16).
Messi's goal was scored in the 29th minute of the match. After defender Lisandro Martínez sent a long and accurate pass into the penalty area, Messi demonstrated perfect timing in his run. He brilliantly received the first pass and directed the ball into the upper part of the goal past goalkeeper Vojinha, opening the score for Argentina at 1-0.
Leadership in the Golden Boot race
This goal was Messi's twentieth in his career at the World Cups. Thanks to it, he increased his advantage over Kylian Mbappé of France, who was in second place in the top scorers list, by two goals. Messi is now the record holder for the most goals in World Cup history.
Furthermore, this was Messi's seventh goal in the current World Cup, allowing him to overtake Mbappé in the Golden Boot race. Currently, Mbappé has six goals, while Messi has scored seven. In eight consecutive matches at the World Cup, Messi has scored 12 goals, which attests to his outstanding form.
Game flow and statistics
From the start of the match, Messi showed high activity. In the 15th minute, his left-footed shot almost went wide. Three minutes later, he received a free kick from about 25 yards away, but the experienced Cape Verde goalkeeper, Vojinha, easily saved the shot. Then Messi capitalized on his chance, scoring the goal that gave Argentina the lead. After scoring, he pointed to Lisandro Martínez, expressing gratitude for his pass, after which the entire team surrounded him to celebrate.
This goal was also Messi's 124th in his international career. In world football, only Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal surpasses him, having scored 146 goals.
Reactions and competition
After the game, Argentine midfielder Rodrigo De Paul highly praised Messi's performance, stating that their friendship is very important, and he feels happy to share these moments with him.
Despite Cape Verde putting up serious resistance against the reigning world champion Argentina, the match ended with Argentina winning 3-2, guaranteeing them a spot in the top 16.
Besides Messi and Mbappé, famous players such as Erling Haaland of Norway and Harry Kane of England are competing for the Golden Boot, each having scored five goals. Also in the list are Ousmane Dembélé of France, Mikel Oyarzabal of Spain, Vinícius Júnior of Brazil, and Ismail Sarr of Senegal, each having scored four goals. However, Sarr left the race because he is outside of Senegal.
In case of a tie in goals at the end of the tournament, FIFA will determine the winner based on the number of assists, and then by the shortest playing time. Before Friday's match, Mbappé led in assists with a 2-0 advantage, but now Messi has taken the lead in goals.
Interestingly, Messi has never won the Golden Boot in his career. At the 2022 World Cup, he scored seven goals, but Mbappé surpassed him with eight. In 2014, Messi finished third overall with four goals. This time he has a chance to win this award for the first time.
