Football superstar Lionel Messi is very close to realising his dream of winning the FIFA World Cup 2022 as his team Argentina stormed into the final on Wednesday. Messi-Led Argentina defeated Croatia 3-0 in the semi-final to book their place in a World Cup final for the sixth time in the history of the event. The 35-year-old lived up to his star status as his scored the first goal for his team in the 34th minute via penalty. The 1-0 lead by Argentina was further consolidated when Julian Alvarez added to the score with a goal in the 39th minute. Messi then provided an assist dribbling past the Croatian defenders as Alvarez scored in the 69th minute to put the nail in the coffin for the Croatians.
The enthralling performance by Messi has reaffirmed his status as one of the all-time greats in the sport. His tremendous leadership and gameplay in against Croatia was acknowledged by former England captain Wayne Rooney. Giving his opinion on the star footballer, Rooney reiterated his old tweet where he had called Messi, the best ever football player. In a tweet made in 2012, he had posted "Messi is a joke. For me the best ever".
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"Nothing has changed," posted Rooney while quoting his tweet form 2012.
Meanwhile, Messi shattered quite a few records with his brilliant game. He claimed a record 18th appearance as captain in World Cup tournaments and went past Mexico's Rafa Marquez (17 appearances) and Argentina's Diego Maradona (16 appearances). With 11 goals, he has now become the highest goal scorer for Argentina in World Cups. He is followed by Gabriel Batistuta (10), Diego Maradona (8), Guillermo Stabile (8), Mario Kempes (6) and Gonzalo Higuain (5).
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, Messi shattered quite a few records with his brilliant game. He claimed a record 18th appearance as captain in World Cup tournaments and went past Mexico's Rafa Marquez (17 appearances) and Argentina's Diego Maradona (16 appearances). With 11 goals, he has now become the highest goal scorer for Argentina in World Cups. He is followed by Gabriel Batistuta (10), Diego Maradona (8), Guillermo Stabile (8), Mario Kempes (6) and Gonzalo Higuain (5).
{{/usCountry}}The Argentina captain has announced that he would hang his boots in international football for Argentina after the World Cup final which will be played on Sunday, December 18.