Ángel Di María took Argentina’s lead up to 2-0 with a 36-minute goal vs France in the 2022 FIFA World Cup final. The teams faced off at the Lusail Stadium in Qatar on December 18, 2022.
Argentine captain Lionel Messi scored the first goal of the match with a 13th-minute penalty shot.
Although Messi was one of the players involved in Argentina’s second goal, Brighton midfielder Alexis Mac Allister received the official assist.
Also read: Lionel Messi scores penalty, gives Argentina lead vs France in FIFA World Cup 2022 final: Watch
Di Maria was able to shoot past Hugo Lloris without pausing thanks to Mac Allister’s expertly timed ball to the former Real Madrid winger.
While Adrien Rabiot and Dayot Upamecano made their World Cup final comebacks for France, Angel Di Maria is back in the Argentina starting lineup.
For the first time since their most recent group-stage match against Poland, the Juventus winger will be in Argentina’s starting eleven. Rabiot and Upamecano, on the other hand, are back in the French lineup after being forced to miss their country’s semi-final match against Morocco owing to illness.
In addition to Di Maria, Lionel Scaloni hoped to replace Nicolas Tagliafico with Marcos Acuna, who was suspended for the semi-final and missed it. Tagliafico ultimately kept his spot at left-back though after Acuna experienced some soreness prior to the game.
Messi has had a fantastic tournament thus far, and his performances have forced his club into the championship game. This is not to imply that Argentina is a bad side without Messi; it has talented players and an experienced coach.
Messi, on the other hand, is the one who drives the entire team forward and supplies the immeasurable oomph that pushes a good team to the brink of greatness.
In some ways, Messi’s World Cup victory will be crucial to establish his legacy rather than just the storybook conclusion to a spectacular career. This is not to argue that it should be, and Messi might not have any control over tonight’s outcome.
It would be unfair to evaluate a complete career based solely on one game, no matter how significant it may be. But being great comes with its share of problems.’
The fact that the person who came before him did so in 1986 is arguably the main reason why Messi needs to win the World Cup. Since the moment Messi first booted a ball, he has been likened to Diego Maradona and heralded as his successor and the heir apparent to his legacy.
Although Messi has unquestionably had a more successful club career, many supporters still view Maradona’s World Cup triumph in 1986 as the peak of footballing greatness and achievement, which Messi has yet to match.
