Luck that old sporting cliché, played a dramatic role at Kansas Stadium on Wednesday. Just six minutes after Argentina saw an early goal ruled out for offside, Algeria found themselves punished by fate. And in the 17th minute, Lionel Messi delivered a moment of pure brilliance to put the world champions ahead.
The strike was Messi’s 14th World Cup goal, scored in his sixth World Cup appearance and on his 200th international match for Argentina. It also made him the oldest goalscorer in World Cup history, adding yet another extraordinary milestone to a career already overflowing with them. Against Algeria, Messi went even further registering the first World Cup hat‑trick of his career.
Two decades earlier, on 16 June 2006, an 18‑year‑old Messi became Argentina’s youngest‑ever World Cup scorer against Serbia and Montenegro. On 16 June 2026 exactly twenty years later he was once again rewriting history.
The breakthrough came when Rodrigo De Paul threaded a pass from midfield into Messi’s path. In classic fashion, Messi drove forward and unleashed a powerful strike from around 25 yards. The Algerian goalkeeper managed to get both hands to the ball but couldn’t stop it from flying into the net.
Messi had already found the net just five minutes into the match, but VAR replays showed he was narrowly offside. It didn’t take long, however, for the Argentine captain to make his presence felt and to remind the world why he remains football’s most enduring magician.
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