Lionel Messi was the star of the show again as he helped his Argentina side progress to the World Cup final.
The ex-Barcelona superstar scored one and assisted another as La Albiceleste dispatched Croatia 3-0 in Tuesday’s semi-final. He was voted as man of the match ahead of teammate Julian Alvarez, who scored twice.
Speaking to the media after the match, as per Sport, Messi was delighted to have sent Argentina to their second final in three World Cups.
“As we said at the beginning, to see the people, our whole families throughout the World Cup. It was incredible. We are going to play in the final, which is what we wanted.”
He also discussed whether this year’s tournament was his best ever, before heaping praise on his Argentina teammates.
“I don’t know if this is my best World Cup. I’m really enjoying this, beyond the fact that we started with a loss. We trusted the group and we knew we would turn it around. This group is crazy. We did it, we’re going to play one more final.”
Messi’s goal against Croatia was a historic one, as he surpassed Gabriel Batistuta as Argentina’s top scorer at World Cups with 11 goals. He will also break another record in Sunday’s final, as he is set to overtake Lothar Matthaus as the man with the most appearances in World Cups.
Both are currently on 25, and should Messi play on Sunday, he will go to 26.
