{"id":33720,"date":"2026-06-23T08:53:53","date_gmt":"2026-06-23T07:53:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/?p=33720"},"modified":"2026-06-23T08:56:52","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T07:56:52","slug":"messi-scores-twice-breaks-world-cup-record-as-argentina-beat-austria","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/23\/messi-scores-twice-breaks-world-cup-record-as-argentina-beat-austria\/","title":{"rendered":"Messi Scores Twice, Breaks World Cup Record as Argentina Beat Austria"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

DALLAS (FN) \u2014 Lionel Messi scored twice, including a record-breaking strike, as Argentina defeated Austria to secure a place in the knockout stage of the World Cup in North America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Messi, 38, struck late in the first half with a trademark left-footed finish after neat build-up play, his 17th World Cup goal, surpassing Miroslav Klose\u2019s all-time mark of 16. He added a second in stoppage time, weaving past four defenders to seal the win before a crowd of 70,649 at AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Inter Miami forward had earlier missed a penalty, continuing a mixed record from the spot at major tournaments. Despite the miss, his performance drew praise from teammates and opponents alike. \u201cMore than 20 years being the best in the world, he is the best in history,\u201d said Argentina striker Julian Alvarez. Austria coach Ralf Rangnick added: \u201cWe knew that he is on a level of his own, and Lionel Messi showed us today that he\u2019s the best.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Austria, who beat debutants Jordan in their opening match, struggled to create chances and did not register a shot on target in the first half. Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez was rarely troubled, with David Alaba\u2019s defensive interventions the highlight for the Austrians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Messi\u2019s record-breaking goal came after Facundo Medina\u2019s pass was cleverly allowed to run by Thiago Almada, leaving Argentina\u2019s captain unmarked to sweep home. The crowd, heavily pro-Argentina, erupted in celebration, chanting Messi\u2019s name throughout the stadium concourses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The victory gives Argentina six points from two matches, ensuring their progress to the knockout rounds. Austria must now win their final group game to remain in contention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Messi, playing in his sixth World Cup, admitted the match was tense. \u201cVery happy for the victory, it was very important, hard, hard, hard, and it gives us peace of mind for what is to come,\u201d he told broadcasters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The win adds another chapter to Messi\u2019s storied international career. He led Argentina to World Cup glory in Qatar in 2022 and continues to defy age with decisive performances. His participation in this tournament was uncertain until late, but his impact has already been historic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Argentina, the focus now shifts to maintaining momentum in the knockout rounds. For Austria, the challenge is to regroup quickly and find a way past their final group opponent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

DALLAS (FN) \u2014 Lionel Messi scored twice, including a record-breaking strike, as Argentina defeated Austria to secure a place in the knockout stage of the World Cup in North America. Messi, 38, struck late in the first half with a trademark left-footed finish after neat build-up play, his 17th World Cup goal, surpassing Miroslav Klose\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":33721,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3699,2096,25,4,5,3,7],"tags":[19926,19927,19930,19931,18717,19929,19928],"class_list":["post-33720","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-africa","category-economics","category-entertainment","category-featured","category-international","category-naija-news","category-sports","tag-argentina-world-cup-2026","tag-austria-vs-argentina","tag-dallas-cowboys-stadium-world-cup","tag-inter-miami-messi","tag-lionel-messi","tag-miroslav-klose-record-broken","tag-world-cup-record-goals"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.funminews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Lionel-Messi-Argentina-trophy-121822-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1440&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33720","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33720"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33720\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33724,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33720\/revisions\/33724"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33721"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33720"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33720"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33720"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}