* He came off the bench and lashed home an 80th-minute free-kick to net for the 7th successive FIFA World Cup™ game, setting the new record
* He is now two strikes ahead of superstar quartet Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele, Vinicius Junior and Erling Haaland in Golden Boot race
Maravi Express
Lionel Messi was given just half an hour to make his mark in the last group match when Argentina beat Jordan 3-1 — and that was all he needed as he scored a sublime free-kick to further extend his lead in the Golden Boot race with six and net a record 19th goal of the FIFA World Cup™.
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The decision by coach Lionel Scaloni’s decision to rotate his squad paid off as Argentina cruised past the already-eliminated Jordan to top the group in fine fashion and incredibly, all their goals came from set plays — first an exquisite free-kick from Giovani Lo Celso, then a penalty from Lautaro Martinez followed by Messi’s set-piece.
Jordan, for their part, ended the tournament on a positive note by scoring against the defending champions through Mousa Altamari’s sliding effort from close range.
Messi, who came off the bench, lashed home an 80th-minute free-kick to net for the 7th successive World Cup game, setting the new record. With top spot already confirmed ahead of the match, Messi was named among the substitutes as coach Scaloni made nine changes from the team that started their 2-0 win over Austria on Monday.
Messi was brought on after an hour and, predictably, stole the show with another fine goal. Giovani Lo Celso gave Argentina the lead early on with a sweetly struck free-kick of his own, before Lautaro Martinez doubled their advantage from the penalty spot.
Jordan, who went into the game knowing they could no longer qualify, refused to buckle and pulled a goal back shortly after half-time. Mousa Altamari was the scorer, emphatically converting Ehsan Haddad’s cross to spark joyous celebrations.
Messi was brought on soon after and it was the genius No10 who restored Argentina’s two-goal cushion. He is now two strikes ahead of superstar quartet Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele, Vinicius Junior and Erling Haaland in Golden Boot race.
Next up for Argentina is Friday’s Round of 32 clash with Cape-Verde-who-etched-their-name-into-the-history-book-on-Thursday when they secured a place in the knockout stages on debut after battling to a determined 0-0 draw against Saudi Arabia in Houston.—Reporting by FIFA Media; editing by Maravi Express
Group stage results
Group A
Mexico 2-0 South Africa
South Korea 2-1 Czechia
Czech Republic 1-2 South Africa
Mexico 1-0 South Korea
South Africa 1-0 South Korea
Czech Republic 0-3 Mexico
Group B
Canada 1-1 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Qatar 1-1 Switzerland
Switzerland 4-1 Bosnia & Herzegovina
Canada 6-0 Qatar
Switzerland 2-1 Canada
Bosnia & Herzegovina 3-1 Qatar
Group C
Brazil 1-1 Morocco
Haiti 0-1 Scotland
Scotland 0-1 Morocco
Brazil 3-0 Haiti
Morocco 4-2 Haiti
Scotland 3-0 Brazil
Group D
USA 4-1 Paraguay
Australia 2-0 Turkiye
USA 2-1 Australia
Turkiye 0-1 Paraguay
Turkiye 3-2 USA
Paraguay 0-0 Australia
Group E
Côte d’Ivoire 1-0 Ecuador
Germany 7-1 Curaçao
Germany 2-1 Côte d’Ivoire
Ecuador 0-0 Curaçao
Curaçao 0-2 Côte d’Ivoire
Ecuador 2-1 Germany
Group F
Netherlands 2-2 Japan
Sweden 5-1 Tunisia
Tunisia 0-4 Japan
Netherlands 5-1 Sweden
Tunisia 1-3 Netherlands
Sweden 1-1 Japan
Group G
Belgium 1-1 Egypt
Iran 2-2 New Zealand
Belgium 0-0
New Zealand 1-3
Egypt 1-1 Iran
New Zealand 1-5 Belgium
Group H
Spain 0-0 Cape Verde
Saudi Arabia 1-1 Uruguay
Uruguay 2-2 Cape Verde
Spain 4-0 Saudi Arabia
Cape Verde 0-0 Saudi Arabia
Uruguay 0-1 Spain
Group I
France 3-1 Senegal
Iraq 1-4 Norway
Norway 3-2 Senegal
France 3-0 Iraq
Norway 1-4 France
Senegal 5-0 Iraq
Group J
Argentina 3-0 Algeria
Austria 3-1 Jordan
Argentina 2-0 Austria
Jordan 1-2 Algeria
Jordan 1-3 Argentina
Algeria 3-3 Austria
Group K
Portugal 1-1 DR Congo
Uzbekistan 1-3 Colombia
Portugal 5-0 Uzbekistan
Colombia 1-0 DR Congo
DR Congo 3-1 Uzbekistan
Colombia 0-0 Portugal
Group L
England 4-2 Croatia
Ghana 1-0 Panama
England 0-0 Ghana
Panama 0-1 Croatia
Panama 0-2 England
Croatia 2-1 Ghana
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