World Cup champion Messi takes missing piece of his career at last

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) – Having an illustrious football career with many individual and club titles, Lionel Messi has finally won the 2022 FIFA World Cup with Argentina to fill his only career gap.

One of the game's greats, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) Football Club forward Messi, 35, guided Argentina to the 2022 World Cup title after the South American team beat 2018 champions France 4-2 on penalties in Qatar on Sunday evening.

The score was 3-3 after the extra time as the penalty shootout decided the winning team.

Messi took his missing puzzle piece and also brought a World Cup to Argentina that the whole nation had been seeking for 36 years.

The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner has won every major trophy with Barcelona and PSG, as well as with the Argentine national team.

Messi, a longtime Barcelona forward between 2005 and 2021, won four UEFA Champions League titles, three FIFA Club World Cups, three UEFA Super Cups, 10 Spanish La Liga, eight Spanish Super Cups, and seven Spanish Cups with the Spanish football powerhouse.

Since 2021 he has played for PSG, where he helped them win the 2022 French Ligue 1 title and a French Super Cup.

Messi also helped Argentina win the Copa America trophy in 2021, his first major title with the Argentine national team.

The tournament is the top-tier football championship for national South American teams.

Recently Messi won the World Cup in Qatar, his missing puzzle piece, after his silver medal with Argentina in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

- Breaks records in Qatar

Argentina as a team had a successful tournament in Qatar, and Messi as an individual also spent an excellent World Cup this winter.

He became the player with the most World Cup appearances in history with 26 games, breaking former German midfielder Lothar Matthaus' record of 25 games.

Messi appeared in the World Cups in 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, and 2022.

In Qatar, he also became the first player to score a goal in every stage of a World Cup – in the group and knockout stages including the final.

The experienced forward netted against Saudi Arabia and Mexico (in Group C), Australia (last 16), the Netherlands (quarterfinals), Croatia (semifinals), and France (final).

Messi did not score against Poland in a Group C match, the only game that he was unproductive.

He scored two goals against France to tally seven goals in a single tournament.

With seven goals in the Qatar 2022, Messi came second in the tournament's top scorers list. Kylian Mbappe from France had eight goals to win the Golden Boot.

Separately Messi, an Argentina forward since 2005, beat his compatriot Gabriel Batistuta in all-time World Cup goals for his nation.

Former Fiorentina and Roma striker Batistuta retired in 2005.

Messi scored against Croatia in the 2022 semifinals to be Argentina's all-time leading goal scorer with 11 goals in the World Cup, surpassing Batistuta.

Then Messi extended his record to 13 World Cup goals after scoring a brace against France on Sunday.

- Brings World Cup to Argentina after 36 years

One of the leading football nations, Argentina is a World Cup frequenter but won the game's ultimate prize twice before their victory in Qatar.

They claimed their first World Cup in 1978 and bagged the second trophy in 1986 when Argentine legend Diego Armando Maradona played a key role for his nation.

Messi, regarded as the successor of the deceased Maradona, displayed a terrific performance on the pitch in the Qatar 2022, as Argentina added to their trophy cabinet after 36 years.

Between 1986 and 2022, Argentina reached the final stage of the World Cup twice.

In 1990 final in Rome, Argentina were beaten by West Germany 1-0 as Andreas Brehme scored the winning goal from a penalty near the end of the match.

In Brazil 2014, Argentina were the finalists.

Messi was on the squad during the 2014 tournament when the Argentine national team narrowly missed out on the title.

The Messi-led team suffered a 1-0 loss to Germany and came home with a silver.

German midfielder Mario Gotze scored the winner in extra time.