Lionel Messi was overcome with emotion on a historic night for Argentina, breaking down in tears during his side’s 3-0 victory over Algeria in their opening FIFA World Cup group-stage match.
The defending champions cruised to victory thanks to a stunning hat-trick from their iconic captain, whose brilliance once again stole the spotlight.
Messi opened the scoring after 17 minutes, curling a superb effort into the net from outside the box before adding two more goals to complete his first-ever World Cup hat-trick.
The three-goal haul saw the Argentine legend draw level with Miroslav Klose on 16 World Cup goals in the all-time scoring charts.
The match also marked another significant milestone as it was Messi’s 200th appearance for his country.
As teammates rushed to celebrate his opener, cameras later caught Messi wiping tears from his eyes with his shirt after the celebrations subsided.
While many assumed the emotional moment was linked to the significance of the occasion, Messi later revealed it stemmed from personal struggles away from football.
“Honestly, completely unrelated to the sport, I went through some difficult, complicated days,” Messi said after the match.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner went on to thank his teammates and members of Argentina’s delegation for supporting him through the challenging period.
“I’m grateful to the entire delegation, to my teammates. They were always there for me, as always. They gave me a lot of strength to get through this, and that’s all.”
Despite the emotional backdrop, Messi delivered another masterclass for La Albiceleste, helping Argentina begin their World Cup title defence in emphatic fashion while adding another chapter to his remarkable international career.
