Lionel Messi wrote his name in World Cup history with a brace that helped Argentina defeat Austria 2-0 in Dallas, officially booking their spot in the round of 32.
In the 9th minute, Argentina were awarded a penalty after Lautaro Martinez was brought down in the box. Messi stepped up to take the spot kick but his shot went wide of the post. This was not the first time Messi has failed from the penalty spot; he was previously denied by Poland goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny at the 2022 World Cup and also missed a penalty at the 2018 tournament.
After having chances blocked by David Alaba in the 19th and 31st minutes, Messi finally found the net in the 38th minute. Facundo Medina provided the assist, Thiago Almada cleverly dummied the ball, and Messi slotted home with his preferred left foot to open the scoring for the defending champions.
That goal took Messi's total World Cup tally to 17, surpassing the previous record of 16 held by Miroslav Klose. In the opening match, he had scored a hat-trick in a 3-0 win over Algeria.
The second half was a closely contested affair, with Austria, under coach Ralf Rangnick, creating a few threats, but Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez remained focused. In the final minute of stoppage time, after a scramble in the box, Messi elegantly dribbled past four Austria defenders to seal the 2-0 victory.
Earlier in the first round, Austria beat debutants Jordan 3-1 but could not pull off a surprise this time against Argentina. Lionel Scaloni's side claimed a full six points, securing early qualification to the knockout stage with one match remaining.
The match was played at the indoor stadium of the Dallas Cowboys NFL team, in front of 70,649 fans, the vast majority of whom supported Argentina.
