ARLINGTON, Texas — With Group J’s top spot already locked in and Jordan eliminated from knockout round contention, Lionel Messi was predictably left out of Argentina’s starting 11 for their final group stage matchup at AT&T Stadium on Saturday night. The international soccer icon, who celebrated his 39th birthday just three days prior, may still see action off the bench, per head coach Lionel Scaloni.
The match brings a major rotation for Argentina, with nine fresh starters taking the field compared to the squad’s 2-0 win over Austria earlier in the group stage. Among the new starting players is Nicolás Paz, who made his World Cup debut as a late substitute for Messi in Argentina’s opening 3-0 victory against Algeria.
This tournament has already cemented Messi’s place as one of the greatest World Cup players in history. Entering the final group match, the Argentine captain holds the tournament’s leading goal tally with five strikes, all of Argentina’s goals so far. He notched his first-ever World Cup hat trick against Algeria, then bagged his fifth goal of the competition in late stoppage time against Austria.
That fifth goal against Austria pushed Messi’s all-time World Cup goal total to 18, breaking the previous record of 16 that he had shared with Germany’s legendary striker Miroslav Klose. This marks Messi’s sixth World Cup appearance, having first competed in the tournament more than two decades ago. Klose, who played in four World Cups between 2002 and 2014, scored his record-breaking final goal against Argentina in the 2014 World Cup final, handing Germany a 1-0 win over Messi’s side.
Messi’s historic run also includes a six-game consecutive World Cup goal scoring streak, a feat only achieved by two other players in men’s World Cup history: France’s Just Fontaine and Brazil’s iconic Jairzinho. Across his entire international career, Messi has now earned 201 caps for Argentina, 28 of which have come at the World Cup — a new FIFA record for men’s tournament appearances.
Just hours after Messi broke Klose’s all-time scoring record, France’s star striker Kylian Mbappé matched the old benchmark of 16 goals with a brace in France’s 3-0 win over Iraq. Mbappé currently sits second in this tournament’s goal rankings with four goals, one behind Messi, and did not add to his tally in France’s final group match against Norway, which ended in a 4-1 French win.
As Group J’s winners, Argentina will advance to the round of 32, where they will face Cape Verde, a tiny island nation making its first ever World Cup qualifying appearance. The knockout round match is scheduled to take place next Friday in Miami, the home city of Messi’s current MLS club Inter Miami.