⚽
History crumbled at the feet of Lionel Messi as the Argentine deity obliterated the FIFA World Cup™ all-time scoring record with a majestic brace against Austria! The impossible became reality in Dallas, where the little magician surged past Miroslav Klose's legendary 16-goal benchmark to plant his flag at the summit of the tournament's most prestigious individual honour with 18 strikes and counting. The Argentina captain, who will celebrate his 39th birthday on Wednesday 24 June, had initially been denied from the penalty spot — but you cannot keep a phenomenon down forever. Late in the first half, Messi received the ball and, with one devastating sweep of his magical left boot, beat goalkeeper Alexander Schlager with a first-time finish that sent shockwaves through the footballing universe. It was goal number 17 — the one that drew him level with Klose — and the stadium erupted as if the heavens themselves had opened. But the 38-year-old wasn't content with merely matching the German great. Deep in stoppage time, Messi pounced on Julian Alvarez's saved effort to hammer home number 18, sealing a 2-0 victory that propelled the defending champions into the Round of 32 with a game to spare. Klose, who had held the crown for 12 years after scoring across four tournaments between 2002 and 2014, had spoken prophetically before the finals: "Messi is simply Messi. I've always admired the way he solved problems and the way he carried himself as a person, even on the pitch. He always brought his team to life." The German legend added: "I've always been a Messi fan, and now that he's standing in front of me, I have to say: that's not too bad either!" Messi's World Cup journey began with a goal against Serbia and Montenegro in 2006, and he has now found the net across five separate editions — a feat matched only by Cristiano Ronaldo. When asked which of his 18 goals was his favourite, a visibly exhausted Messi could only manage: "I don't know, to be honest, I can't remember right now. I'm tired, I'm running low on energy." Even legends run out of words when they've just conquered the world.
