Lionel Messi starts for Argentina today as their World Cup defence continues with a last-16 tie against Mohamed Salah’s Egypt. Argentina survived an almighty scare last time out, defeating Cape Verde 3-2 after extra time in one of the best games of the tournament.

Lionel Messi entered the history books after scoring a hat-trick in Argentina's 3-0 victory over Algeria in the opening match of the 2026 World Cup.

He played for only 30 minutes, and he evidently did not feel the need to do much running, but Lionel Messi still gave the people what they wanted. His sixth goal of this tournament, curled into the net from range,

It’s a question that almost every footballer would love to be in a position to answer when they sit down with their grandchildren one day. ‘What’s it like to play against Lionel Messi?’ Sharing the pitch with the Argentinian is one of the biggest ...