​With every game at the 2026 World Cup, Lionel Messi continues to strengthen the case that he is the greatest footballer the sport has ever seen. The Argentina captain once again dragged the defending champions deep into the knockout rounds, delivering another performance that defined the match. Against Egypt in the last 16, he produced a momentous display, scoring once and creating another as Argentina recovered from a 2-0 deficit with little more than 10 minutes remaining to pull off one of the most remarkable comebacks in World Cup history.
Along the way, he shattered more records. He became the oldest player ever to both score and assist in a World Cup match, extending a record he already held. It was the fifth time he had both scored and assisted in a World Cup game, a feat no other player has managed more than three times since records began in 1966. Additionally, he moved clear as the competition’s all-time leading assist provider with nine, surpassing Diego Maradona, while his latest goal added to his growing collection of knockout-stage strikes.
Yet even as he dazzled, he set another, less welcome, record from the penalty spot. Amid another display of genius, one question remains persistent: should Argentina take penalties away from him? It seems almost absurd to ask of a player who has spent more than two decades redefining footballing excellence. Messi has scored virtually every type of goal imaginable and has won every major trophy there is to win. But from 12 yards, the numbers tell a different story. Is it time to give record-breaker Pickford the credit he deserves?
Against Egypt, Argentina were given the perfect chance to respond after Nicolas Tagliafico was fouled in the box with the score at 1-0. Messi stepped up, but his effort lacked both power and placement. The goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir guessed correctly and made a comfortable save. It ultimately did not cost Argentina. Messi inspired their astonishing comeback, with Cristian Romero reducing the deficit before the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner equalised and Enzo Fernández completed a dramatic stoppage-time victory at 3-2.
But for much of the afternoon it looked as though the missed penalty would define Argentina’s exit. It was Messi’s second missed penalty of the tournament after failing from the spot against Austria in the group stage. No player in World Cup history has ever missed two penalties in normal time at a single edition. Across his World Cup career, excluding shootouts, Messi has now converted only four of his eight penalties.
Messi himself acknowledged the latest miss weighed heavily on him. The 39-year-old admitted he broke down after the final whistle despite Argentina’s dramatic victory, saying he cried because he felt that he let his teammates down. Even amid such heartbreak, the enduring sense is that Messi’s influence on the World Cup landscape remains vast and undeniable, casting a long shadow over the tournament and reaffirming his status as one of football’s most enduring icons.