With over one billion people tuning in around the globe, Sunday's World Cup final represents the grandest stage in all of sports. For the players, it's a chance to touch immortality by joining the pantheon of winners.
Many on France's team already tasted glory in 2018, but now they're focused on becoming the first nation to successfully defend its crown since Brazil in 1958 and 1962.
If you're still rewinding and replaying Lionel Messi's magnificent assist vs. Croatia, this fan footage of it will knock your socks off.
The magic behind the clip is that it shows the play from its genesis and allows you to see how Messi masterminded the sequence with some small talk with Julián Álvarez near the midfield line.
With this year's World Cup being held in the middle of the European soccer season, many questioned the impact it would have on the players’ clubs. While there have been some high-profile injuries, there've also been some players who've written their names among the stars.
For their clubs, this break has helped star players gain global recognition and grow their values ahead of the January transfer window. Whether they cash in and sell high or keep their players, the World Cup has absolutely helped some clubs more than others.
The stage is set. The 2022 FIFA World Cup Final will be a clash of titans — Lionel Messi and Argentina battling Kylian Mbappé and France with both nations going for a third title. Only Brazil (five), Germany and Italy (both four) have won it more.
France, the defending world champions, have a lethal mixture of know-how and individual brilliance, but Argentina, South American champs, have Messi and a supporting cast ready to run through walls for their beloved captain.
El cuento de hadas de Marruecos se acabó. Lo mató Francia y lo mató una jugada sublime de Kylian Mbappé.
Los Leones del Atlas fueron la gran sorpresa del Mundial de Catar, pero la gasolina no les alcanzó ante un equipo galo pragmático y que con dos estocadas aseguró su segunda final consecutiva en el evento deportivo más grande del planeta.
Mbappé no estuvo al tope de sus capacidades, pero una fenomenal creación suya selló el partido para Francia y le dio uno que otro punto en la carrera que tiene con Lionel Messi por ser el mejor jugador del torneo.
With a Lionel Messi penalty, an improbable Julián Álvarez goal off a dribble that started inside his own half and an outrageous Messi assist, Argentina clinched a spot in the 2022 FIFA World Cup Final by beating Croatia 3-0 and improved its semifinal record in the competition to a perfect five-for-five.
Argentina se convirtió en el primer finalista del Mundial de Catar 2022.
La Albiceleste venció a Croacia por 3-0, gracias a una clase magistral de Lionel Messi. El 10 anotó un gol y dio una de las mejores asistencias del torneo para guiar a sus compañeros en una victoria que tuvo el reconocimiento de Ronaldinho en las tribunas del Estadio Lusail.
Messi comenzó la fiesta anotando desde los doce pasos, tras un claro penal cometido sobre Julián Álvarez
European teams have a high chance of winning the World Cup. And that likelihood is a reflection of how the Old Continent has established its dominion in the soccer world, spiriting away talent from other regions through money. And look, I get it; the strategy is valid in the market society we live in today.
What pisses me off, though, is how European soccer, having all the power in its hands, has the indecency to complain and play the victim in the way some of the national teams – and their surroundings – have done during the tournament.
Lionel Messi showed the world once again that he’s in arguably the best form of his career. Aging like a fine wine, Messi got a goal and an assist vs. Croatia in Argentina’s 3-0 World Cup semifinal victory on Tuesday.
His goal came from the penalty spot in the 34th minute, but the assist. Oh, that glorious assist. That one came in the 69th minute.
Leading 2-0, Messi and Julián Álvarez put the nail in the coffin with about 20 minutes to go. The 35-year-old maestro looked like he was a young 20-something again with a dazzling run.
En su misión de llevar a Argentina a la final de la Copa del Mundo, Lionel Messi rompió otro récord en su condecorada carrera.
Luego de convertir el primero de los tres goles con que la Albiceleste venció a Croacia, el "10" se convirtió en el máximo goleador de su país en la historia del torneo.
La marca de Messi se concretó en el minuto 34, luego de patear el penal que el portero Dominik Livaković le había cometido a Julián Álvarez.
El tiro de Messi fue arriba, cruzado e inatajable.