An unquenchable Messi leads Argentina to the round of 32

BarcelonaThere is a play that Leo Messi likes very much. While his team attacks down the left and the winger on duty reaches the byline, the center forward goes to the six-yard box to look for the finish. The defenders, normally, follow him. And while all this is happening, discreetly but totally intentionally, Leo Messi appears at the half-moon. The pass goes to him, of course. Like lightning, he loads his leg and finishes with power and precision. The shot, always with his left leg, has a bit of curl, enough to finally mislead and surprise everyone, from the defenders to the goalkeeper. It's a goal he's scored about two hundred times. Or more. But he keeps doing it. And he will continue to do it. A goal that had a double prize. It served him to open the scoring against Austria and become the top scorer in World Cup history. A decisive goal in Argentina's victory, which he would seal with a second goal in stoppage time to leave his team as first in group J, already qualified for the round of 32 (2-0).

Messi opened the scoring in the 38th minute with a trademark goal and then closed it by snatching a rebound in the area, when he was able to move like lightning to create space and finish by shooting under the legs of the defense. That's five goals for Argentina in the World Cup. Five goals for Leo Messi. The adjectives are running out.

A brace. Which could have been a hat trick if he had converted the clear and clumsy penalty that two defenders jointly committed on Lautaro. Incomprehensibly, the main referee, the Egyptian Amin Omar, did not see it live and needed VAR assistance to award the eleven meters. But Messi missed. Goalkeeper Alexander Schlager guessed the trajectory and the Argentine had to adjust the ball so much that it went wide. It is one of those mysteries that remain unanswered: how can someone with this technical level continue to get stuck from the penalty spot. The collection of curses he threw into the air was monumental. But Messi is Messi and, half an hour later, he made amends by scoring his 17th World Cup goal, his fourth in this edition of the tournament, which allows him to surpass the sixteen scored by German Miroslav Klose in the 2002, 2006, 2010, and 2014 editions. Messi finished the match with eighteen.

Unlike the debut against Algeria, this time the Austrian team made things more difficult for the "albiceleste's" attack, which had to contend with a much more solid defense, with physical and well-organized players on the field. It was a tough, controversial match, with aggression and VAR intervention. But a match that, in the end, Argentina deservedly won. Because it is known that the reigning world champion transforms in World Cup years, although it would be wise for coach Lionel Scaloni to take note because, to retain the title, Messi's contribution and the courage of the rest may not be enough.

Argentina is Messi and ten others

Austria did not shy away or shut down defensively. They contested possession and had some interesting attacks, especially in the second half. However, the Austrian team lacked more players who could make a difference. In the final stretch, with a more tired Messi and Argentina defending the score, the Central European team's monologue was almost total, as was the absence of clear opportunities, beyond a deflected header from Sabitzer in stoppage time. In general, Austria's offensive projection was very deficient, beyond the shots from Sabitzer and Gregortish themselves.

The Argentine triumph, rounded off with Messi's brace in stoppage time, could not be completed due to Cuti Romero's injury at the start of the second half. Nico also came on as a fresh substitute, who had a double shot to extend the Albiceleste advantage. Julián Álvarez, absent in the debut against Algeria, and who arrived with some muscular discomfort, was able to play a little more than a quarter of an hour, but showed competitive rhythm. It was not necessary. Messi, all alone, two days before celebrating his 39th birthday, took care of everything.