Lionel Messi of Argentina wrote another chapter in history, scoring his 17th and 18th career World Cup goals in succession on his sixth World Cup stage.
Messi recorded a brace in Argentina's Group J second-round match against Austria at Dallas Stadium in Texas, the United States, on Monday. With 18 career World Cup goals, Messi surpassed Miroslav Klose of Germany (16 goals) to claim sole possession of first place on the all-time World Cup scoring list.
The start was not smooth. Messi missed a penalty kick in the ninth minute, extending his run of misfortune with a third consecutive World Cup penalty failure. But he shook off the disappointment by scoring the opening goal (his 17th) in the 38th minute, and he added a clinching goal in the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time, just before the final whistle. With this, he extended his goal-scoring streak to six consecutive World Cup matches and stretched his own record for most World Cup appearances to 28 matches.
This milestone is the fruit of a 21-year career with the national team. Messi, who made his A-match debut at age 18 in a friendly against Hungary in August 2005, experienced a disappointing start, being sent off just two minutes after coming on as a substitute. But the following year, he rose to global stardom by scoring his debut goal against Serbia and Montenegro (a 6-0 win) in the group stage of the 2006 Germany World Cup.
After failing to score (with one assist) at the 2010 South Africa tournament (eliminated in the quarterfinals), Messi recorded four goals and one assist at the 2014 Brazil tournament but finished as runner-up. At the 2018 Russia tournament, he fought hard with one goal and two assists but was eliminated in the round of 16. At the 2022 Qatar World Cup, he led Argentina to the title with a commanding performance of seven goals and three assists.
His retirement was expected after the title, but Messi took on his sixth World Cup stage this year. With a hat trick in the group stage opener against Algeria (a 3-0 win), Messi reached 24 career World Cup attacking points (16 goals and eight assists), surpassing the all-time record for most attacking points held by "King of Football" Pele of Brazil (21). And with his brace on this day, he built the monument of becoming the sole leader in all-time World Cup scoring.
Behind the milestone, completed two days before his 39th birthday, lay personal pain. News of the recent illness of his father, Jorge Messi (68), his agent and steadfast supporter, weighed heavily on his mind. After finishing the opening match, Messi shed tears, saying, "I have had a difficult few days unrelated to football."
