Argentina opened their World Cup title defence with a statement performance in Kansas City, where Lionel Messi turned a tight contest into a memorable night by scoring a hat-trick, reaching a shared place in tournament history and powering his side past a spirited Algeria team.
Lionel Messi marked his 200th international appearance with a record-breaking display, scoring three times to lift his World Cup finals tally to 16 goals and draw level with Germany’s Miroslav Klose at the top of the all-time scoring chart.
The reigning champions were pushed hard, but Argentina’s quality in key moments made the difference as they began Group J with a win.
The game opened at a fast pace, with both sides seeing early goals ruled out during a lively start that kept the stadium on edge. Messi also had an earlier strike disallowed before Algeria suffered the same setback minutes later as the match quickly settled into an intense rhythm.
Argentina finally broke through in the 17th minute when Messi produced a composed curling finish after combining with Inter Miami teammate Rodrigo De Paul, sending the ball past Luca Zidane, son of France legend Zinedine Zidane, on what was his 27th World Cup appearance.
Moments before halftime, Messi avoided punishment after a strong challenge on Algeria’s Aissa Mandi, as the match continued to swing at high intensity. Argentina stayed in control but were made to work for every opening.
The second goal arrived on the hour mark when Messi reacted fastest to a mistake from Zidane, finishing from close range to double the lead. He then completed his hat-trick in the 76th minute, smashing a powerful effort from the edge of the area after being set up by Nicolas Gonzalez.
The result gave Argentina a winning start in Group J as they aim to become only the third nation to defend the World Cup successfully. It also marked their first-ever opening win as reigning champions, having previously fallen in their first matches in 1982 and 1990. Their next fixtures will be against Austria and Jordan.