Lionel Messi opened his World Cup account by netting an early penalty against Saudi Arabia as he aims to break multiple tournament records.
Messi is already the Argentine international with more caps (166) and more goals (92) than any other player in the nation’s history. He has also made 52 direct goal assists, more than any other player for the South American nation.
The superstar led Argentina to the Copa America title last year and while winning the World Cup would complete his set of medals and cement his status as the best player of all time, there are multiple other personal records he can set in the finals in Qatar.
Messi will not be able to break Cristiano Ronaldo's all-time goal-scoring record of 117 international goals this tournament nor match the all-time appearance record of Kuwaiti Bader Al-Mutawa, but there are various other records he will be eyeing.
If Argentine reach the last four and Messi plays in every game, he will surpass the record for most games ever played in World Cups. Former Germany international Lothar Matthaus currently holds that record with 25, with Messi now on 20. Messi will almost certainly become the Argentine to play the most World Cup games, with Diego Maradona currently holding that record with 21 matches.
Messi has now played in five World Cups but he became the first-ever Argentine player to join that club by playing against Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. However, it will be more complicated for Messi to set a new World Cup record for an Argentine player with the most goals – Tuesday's goal was his seventh in the tournament, but Gabriel Batistuta still holds the record with ten.
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It would take an astonishing tournament for Messi to become the World Cup's record goal scorer – former Germany striker Miroslav Klose’s 16 goals would mean that the Argentine would need to net double figures this campaign to equal that. However, he has equalled the record of Pele, Uwe Seeler, Klose and Cristiano Ronaldo in scoring in four different World Cup finals.
Speaking ahead of the tournament, Messi said: "It's probably my last World Cup. I always felt good and comfortable, especially when I played a lot until the start of the World Cup. I didn't do anything special, I took care of myself like my whole career. It will surely be my last World Cup and my last opportunity to achieve this great dream of winning the tournament."
