Lionel Messi missed the penalty that would have made him the all-time World Cup top scorer – in Argentina’s group stage match against Austria.
9 min: LIonel Messi missed a penalty.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner stepped up to the penalty spot after Lautaro Martínez was fouled in the box. Everyone expected the magician to put the ball in the goal and write himself into the history books with his 16th World Cup goal.
But Messi stumbled in the run-up – and shot the ball off the post. The Austrians, who had dyed the stadium red, erupted in wild cheers.
Luckily for Messi, the penalty came early enough in the game that Argentina still had plenty of time to regain control. The world champions dominated possession in the first few minutes, but were constantly disrupted by the Austrians who pressed aggressively – as Ralf Rangnick’s tactics dictate.
After the penalty miss, Messi followed up by misusing another great chance just ten minutes later. At the moment, the score is still 0-0, and the question is whether the world’s greatest player will get another chance to make history in this match.
