Lionel Messi led Argentina to a stunning World Cup victory beating defending champions France 4-2 on penalties
Argentina survived a miraculous comeback by France in one of the World Cup’s grand finals to clinch their third title 4-2 on penalties after a dramatic 3-3 draw at the Lusail Iconic Stadium.
The South American champions were apparently set to claim their third world title, with Lionel Messi and Ángel Di María scoring in the first half, with a weak France oblivious to Argentina’s rampant supremacy.
However, two quick goals from Kylian Mbappé before the last 10 minutes of the competition leveled France incredibly to force extra time, where Messi scored his second of the match before another Mbappé penalty saw the teams finish level after 120 fascinating minutes. .
Lionel Scaloni’s men kept their cool from 12 meters out as Kingsley Coman and Aurélien Tchouameni missed their lines before Gonzalo Montiel scored the decisive penalty to end the 1978 and 1986 champions’ 36-year drought without another World Cup. World in the cabinet.
France had earned a reputation as a winger for sitting back and pounding teams in the current World Cup break, but that strategy proved completely ineffective against the well-trained Argentinian machine.
Scaloni’s men won the midfield battle with ease and dominated the game from the start, with the newly reintroduced Di Maria wreaking havoc on the left side.
The Juventus veteran fired in the 17th minute after Theo Hernandez fumbled, not for the first time in the opening exchanges, and would make Ousmane Dembele his next victim six minutes later.
Di María brushed past Dembélé in the box before being awkwardly tackled by the Barcelona man, allowing Messi to get past Hugo Lloris and send the French number one down the wrong path from 12 metres.
In doing so, Messi became the first player to score in the group stages, round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final of a single World Cup, and weak France barely reacted.
The effervescent Di María became top scorer in the 36th minute as Argentina gave France a lesson in counter-attacking football, with Messi once again involved when his cheeky shot found Julián Álvarez.
The Manchester City player cleared Alexis Mac Allister down the right and the Brighton & Hove Albion forward crossed for Di María to fire over Lloris into the back of the net.
The excitement nearly got the better of Di Maria when French coach Didier Deschamps responded by bringing on Marcus Thuram and Randal Kolo Muani for Dembele and Olivier Giroud, but Emiliano Martinez made it to half time without having to make a stop.
Any conversation Deschamps had with his players at half time proved ineffective as Argentina stayed in front after the restart, aggressively frustrating the 2018 champions and testing Lloris through Rodrigo de Paul and Álvarez.
The Blues began to show some bite after an hour late, posting their first shot of the game in the 71st minute when Kylian Mbappe dodged from the left and fired, but his shot went harmlessly over the crossbar.
Cristian Romero and Nicolás Otamendi managed a passive France relatively well, but the latter took advantage of the wrong side of the brilliant Kolo Muani on 79 minutes and conceded a penalty after bringing down the Eintracht Frankfurt striker.
After witnessing the arrival of Argentina’s 10 from the penalty spot, Mbappé stepped forward and almost managed to finish it into the net, beating Martínez, who grabbed the ball but only managed to send the Frenchman’s shot in for a corner.
Out of nowhere, France’s talismanic striker leveled the reigning champions just a minute after scoring his first, playing a brace with Thuram and firing a thunderous volley into the far corner to dispatch the Argentinian contingent in shock.
La Albiceleste paid the price for a slowdown in a shockingly quick turn of fortune and the hearts of the Argentinians were in their mouths when Thuram slotted Enzo Fernández’s leg into the penalty area on 87 minutes, but the Borussia Mönchengladbach man smiled. mischievously while he was. . hired to dive.
Despite the best efforts of Messi, who sent a poisonous shot from long range past Lloris’s raised glove late on, there were no more goals eight minutes into the second half as another scathing 30 minutes elapsed in profile.
France continued to set the pace in the first extra time, but Les Bleus were indebted to Dayot Upamecano, who produced a sensational block from Lautaro Martínez in the 104th minute, before Raphael Varane headed in to follow up Montiel’s scissors kick.
An Argentina charge was unmistakable in the 109th minute as Lloris parried a powerful Martinez effort from a tight angle after a deft pass and Messi’s rebound was canceled out by Jules Kounde, but referee Szymon Marciniak’s watch indicated the ball had crossed the line.
But just as the 2022 World Cup final could no longer be silly, Montiel covered a shot from Mbappé with his arm in the area in the 27th minute of extra time and the Paris Saint-Germain striker completed his hat-trick with a penalty without piety.
Continuing with the silly theme of the final, Emiliano Martínez thwarted Kolo Muani one on one before Lautaro Martínez inexplicably sent a free header wide of the goal in stoppage time, and the fate of the 18k gold trophy would be decided 12 yards away. after one of the most spectacular matches in World Cup history.
Mbappe and Messi converted from 12 yards before Martinez dove to the right to clear Coman and Paulo Dybala fired confidently down the middle to give Argentina an early lead.
Martínez’s mind games were a delight as Tchouameni deflected France’s next free kick, and Leandro Paredes’ shot proved too difficult for Lloris to deflect.
Argentina was one penalty away from glory and Kolo Muani kept France alive with a missile in the middle, but Montiel coolly sent Lloris to tears of joy and applause from the Blue and Whites.
Lineups:
Argentina Replacements: 14 E. Palacios, 4 G. Montiel, 18 G. Rodríguez, 15 Á. Correa, 17 P. Gómez, 21 P. Dybala, 5 L. Paredes, 12 G. Rulli, 22 Lautaro Martínez, 6 G. Pezzella, 8 M. Acuña, 2 J. Foyth, 25 Lisandro Martínez, 1 F. Armani, 16 T. Almada
France Replacements: 23 A. Aréola, 16 S. Mandanda, 6 M. Guendouzi, 15 J. Veretout, 17 W. Saliba, 2 B. Pavard, 24 I. Konaté, 20 K. Coman, 25 E. Camavinga, 13 Y. Fofana, 3 A. Disasi, 26 M. Thuram, 12 R. Kolo Muani
Scorers:
Mbappe (Goal)
Coman (penalty missed)
Tchouameni (penalty missed)
Kolo Muani (Goal)
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