Argentina vs France. Lionel Messi vs Kylian Mbappe. King vs heir to the throne. Script writers could hardly have come up with a better World Cup final storyline.
The player widely regarded as the greatest of his generation will face the man expected to be the best of his generation in a mouth-watering battle for football's top prize on Sunday night in Qatar. And it promises to be a fascinating battle between the two Paris Saint-Germain teammates.
The game represents Messi's final chance of international immortality as he looks to win the trophy Mbappe won as a teenager in Russia four years ago. It could also represent something of a symbolic changing of the guard as the 23-year-old looks to prove once and for all he is now the world's best.
