After helping Argentina win the World Cup in Qatar, Lionel Messi has broken yet another record.
Argentina defeated France on penalties in what will be remembered as the greatest World Cup ever, and the diminutive magician—who scored twice in the championship match and was awarded the golden ball for the best player at the competition—finally laid claim to the one trophy that had eluded him his entire career.
Additionally, Argentina’s No. 10 smashed a lot of established records on his journey to the final. These comprised
- In a single World Cup, Lionel Messi is the first player to score in the group stage, round of 16, quarterfinal, semifinal, and final match.
- With 13 goals and 8 assists, Lionel Messi has contributed to 21 goals overall, the most of any player in World Cup history.
- Lionel Messi currently holds the record for the most World Cup games played (26).
- Lionel Messi has equaled the most penalty goals scored by a player in the same World Cup (4 by Rob Rensenbrink in 1978 and 4 by Eusébio in 1966) with his four goals.
- Lionel Messi is the only player in World Cup history to have scored and provided an assist in four different games (since the 1966 edition).
- Overtaking Pelé’s four assists from the previous record, Lionel Messi has assisted five goals in the World Cup knockout stages, which is a record high.
- Lionel Messi has produced the most opportunities in World Cup history (since records began in 1966).
- Argentina’s Lionel Messi has now scored 13 goals at the World Cup, more than any Argentinian player in the history of the event.
But Lionel Messi keeps setting records after the championship, this time off the field rather than on it.
This comes as his joyful Instagram post has surpassed the egg [yep, egg] that had previously held the title of most liked post in the platform’s history.
At the time of writing, his 59 million likes (and counting) put him nearly a million likes ahead of the runner-up on instagram platform.
