La Scaloneta keeps making history. This Monday, at Dallas Stadium, Argentina beat Austria 2-0 with a brace from Lionel Messi, who broke another world record: he is now the all-time top scorer in World Cup history, surpassing German Miroslav Klose. Lionel Scaloni’s team secured their ticket to the Round of 32 and dreams of finishing first in Group J.
The match started uphill for the captain. Messi missed a penalty in the early minutes and it seemed the afternoon would turn sour. But the No. 10 is from another galaxy: he recovered, scored a great goal after a team play, and sealed the match in stoppage time with another brilliant move. Dibu Martínez, with almost no work, watched from the goal as Austria failed to threaten. Argentina dominated possession (55% vs 45%), took 12 shots against 6, and completed 554 passes with 90% accuracy.
With this victory, the national team reached 6 points and depends on itself to finish first in the group. The new Olympic tiebreaker format works in their favor: if Algeria does not lose to Jordan, or if Algeria wins, Argentina secures the top spot. Even losing to Jordan, La Scaloneta would be first for having beaten both direct rivals.
In the Round of 32, the opponent could be Uruguay, second in Group H, if Argentina finishes first. Spain leads that group with 4 points, while Uruguay and Cape Verde share second place with 2 points. A classic Rio de la Plata derby looms on the horizon.
“I am very happy with the victory, it is very important, it gives us peace of mind for what’s to come,” Messi said after the match. “I was angry about the missed penalty, but we managed to turn it around.” The captain is already a living legend: with 13 goals in World Cups, he left Klose behind and continues to grow his myth.
Argentina is already in the next phase. Now, they wait for the group’s conclusion to know if they finish first and face Uruguay, or second and face another rival. But one thing is certain: with an inspired Messi, anything is possible.
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para mi messi es el piberio klose un muerto al lado de nuestro 10 austria un equipo del monton no da ni pa calentar vamos argentina carajo a ganar todo porque somos los pibes del barrio la muchedumbre vibra con el futbol del populo klose jajaja pasa a retiro
Para mí, Messi les voló la cabeza a los austriacos, Klose es un muerto al lado de la Pulga. Argentina va a ganar el mundial porque tenemos al mejor de la historia, y los zurdos lloran. Vamos los pibes carajo, esto huele a gloria.