Lionel Messi says his emotional reaction after scoring Argentina’s first goal in their 3-0 World Cup victory over Algeria was due to him having “some difficult, complicated days.”Argentina’s victorious start to their 2026 World Cup campaign was headlined by the 38-year-old scoring a hat-trick. The three goals saw the Argentina captain tie former Germany striker Miroslav Klose for the most goals scored at the World Cup (16). After scoring his first goal, Messi was visibly emotional and wiping tears from his eyes.After the game, he was asked by reporters about his reaction to scoring, to which he replied: “Honestly, (it was) completely unrelated to the sport. I went through some difficult, complicated days.“I’m grateful to the entire delegation, to my teammates. They were always there for me, as always. They gave me a lot of strength to get through this, and that’s all.”
Lionel Messi's first World Cup hat-trick comes a week before his 39th birthday.
He is now the top scorer in men's World Cup history with 16 goals, level with Germany's Miroslav Klose.
The oldest player to ever score a hat-trick at a World Cup.
Simply extraordinary. pic.twitter.com/FyEJH9QXuR
