Argentina Dubbed ‘Special' After Lionel Messi's Record-Setting World Cup Goal
Just two days out from turning 39 years old, Lionel Messi has proven he’s still arguably the best player in soccer right now.
Argentina‘s captain opened the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a massive statement against Algeria, scoring a historic hat-trick in a 3-0 win. The goals came in a variety of ways, and the hat-trick saw him match Miroslav Klose’s all-time World Cup scoring record.
He followed it up in Argentina's second group-stage match against Austria on Monday with another historic moment etched into World Cup history.
In a tense, physical match, Messi first missed a penalty before coming back in the 38th minute with a clinical left-foot finish that officially made him the all-time leading scorer in men’s World Cup history with 17 goals.
He later added to his tally with another goal in added time, improving his career total to 18 goals and helping Argentina secure a 2-0 win over Austria.
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In what many believe will be Messi’s final World Cup, he’s quickly reinforced Argentina’s status as legitimate tournament contenders.
Enter Mike Grella.
On “The Pat McAfee Show,” the former U.S. forward turned soccer analyst firmly placed France and Spain in a tier of their own, but quickly pointed to Argentina as a “surprise” pick due in large part to how Messi has played across these first two games.
“It’s Spain and France. It’s them against them, if they decide to show up … The one, I don’t want to say dark horse, but the one team that would surprise me, is Argentina with Messi,” Grella said. “Messi looks really good still. Messi looks sharp. He looks efficient. The team has a bunch of dogs. You look through the team, and you find maybe one or two good players with Messi, but they’re all willing to work for him … That’s a special team right there, and they won the last one, so why can’t they do it again?”
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Before the tournament kicked off, France and Spain were the two heavy favorites, followed by England, Brazil, Portugal, and Argentina.
France, behind 2022 World Cup Golden Boot winner Kylian Mbappe, has looked dominant, knocking off Senegal 3-1 in their opening group stage match, with two goals from Mbappe.
Spain, meanwhile, rebounded with a commanding 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia on Sunday, including a goal from 18-year-old phenom Lamine Yamal, who’s recently been compared to Messi. The victory followed their surprising 0-0 draw against Cape Verde in the opener.
La Albiceleste sat a tier below those two coming into the 2026 World Cup, but they’ve opened looking equally as sharp.
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Alongside Messi, players like Julian Alvarez, Lautaro Martinez, Enzo Fernandez, and Emiliano Martinez have been the headliners for Argentina.
With their win over Austria on Monday, Argentina has officially moved atop Group J with six points, clinching a spot in the knockout rounds.
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This story was originally published June 22, 2026 at 12:56 PM.