Lionel Messi did not miss his chance to make history; he capitalized on his first opportunity and, with two goals, gave Argentina the victory over Austria—a virtual qualification for the Round of 16, which could be confirmed as early as today—and a new record: with 18 goals, he is now the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history.
With determination and without even complaining about the missed penalty in the 9th minute, Messi and Argentina lived up to expectations, even though the Central Europeans’ supposed suffocating pressure—which ultimately proved to be less than expected—might have been cause for concern. Lionel Scaloni won the tactical battle against Ralf Rangnick. And Messi once again proved wrong those who refuse to grant him the title of the greatest of all time.
Messi missed a penalty, but he made history
He soon had the chance to prove it, because three minutes in, Stefan Posch—who was playing with a protective splint on his jaw, which he had broken against Jordan—committed a penalty on Lautaro, which the referee called after reviewing the play via VAR.
However, Messi missed the target when he tried to shoot too close to the Austrian goalkeeper’s left post (9th minute), but it didn’t matter.
As he approaches his 39th birthday, the “No. 10” wisely compensates for the physical toll.
He no longer needs to run long distances; he accelerates over 10 meters, and that’s enough to strike fear into his opponents, because he always shows up exactly where he needs to be.
That allowed him to get into the box unmarked on only two occasions, both of which were thwarted at the last moment by David Alaba.
On the third attempt, he made no mistake, breaking through from the second line as the Austrian defense retreated.
He waited for Facundo Medina’s back pass and sent the ball into the net with the inside of his foot.
A goal for the history books, another record to add to his list (Filed under: Messi breaks a record).
Scaloni won the tactical battle, and Argentina dominated
The goal thwarted an Austrian plan that never quite worked out.
The “pack of wolves” that Ralf Rangnick has turned his team into whenever they lose possession lost its effectiveness against Scaloni’s formation.
No long possessions—just vertigo.
Get into the opponent’s half as quickly as possible to take advantage of Lautaro’s speed—who is once again starting ahead of Julián Álvarez—and Messi’s creativity.
Argentina didn’t give the ball away very often in their own half, and Emiliano Martínez had a quiet first half.
Nor did the Austrian team put much more pressure on them after halftime, aside from a free kick by Marcel Sabitzer that Dibu handled well.
On the contrary, it was Argentina and Messi who had a chance to score, but Alexander Schlager prevented it with a fine save on a shot across the goal (66′) – (Filed under: Messi breaks record).
The Albiceleste Shows Depth and Ambition
Austria wasn’t able to use its physicality to try to even the score, and Lionel Scaloni was able to test the depth of his roster.
Give Julián Álarez—who has had a limited role on the team so far—some playing time, and assess Nicolás Tagliafico’s recovery.
Everything was perfect. It was so magical that even Messi scored the second goal, further fueling the euphoria of the enthusiastic crowd.
To lead an Argentine national team that has what it takes to compete for its second star.
It comes across as a tight-knit group and features the best of them all (Filed under: Messi breaks record).
Messi and Argentina lived up to expectations
NuevaOnda.com
Technical Specifications
2 – Argentina: Emiliano Martínez; Nahuel Molina, Cristian Romero (Nicolás Otamendi, 58′), Lisandro Martínez, Facundo Medina (Nicolás Tagliafico, 82′); Rodrigo de Paul (Leandro Paredes, 82′), Enzo Fernández, Alexis Mac Allister; Lionel Messi, Lautaro Martínez (Nicolás González, 65′), and Thiago Almada (Julián Álvarez, 65′).
Head Coach: Lionel Scaloni
0 – Austria: Alexander Schlager; Kevin Danso, Stefan Posch (Prass, 68′), David Alaba (Friedl, 68′); Xaver Schlager, Nicolas Seiwald, Marcel Sabitzer, Romano Schmid (Wimmer, 78′), Konrad Laimer, Paul Wanner (Arnautovic, 68′); Michael Gregoritsch (Chukwuemeka, 86′).
Head Coach: Ralf Rangnick (GER). He issued yellow cards to the Austrians Posch and Laimer, and to the Argentines Facundo Medina and Leandro Paredes.
Goal: 1-0: 38′: Messi. 2-0: 95′: Messi.
Referee: Amin Mohamed Omar (Egypt).
Notes: Matchday 2 of Group J, played at AT&T Stadium in Arlington in front of 70,655 spectators. Among those in the stands were Manu Ginóbili and Mario Kempes.
With information from EFE
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