By helping his nation win their third World Cup in
Qatar, Lionel Messi solidifies his status as the greatest player of the
contemporary age.
There were actually two halves of the game. Argentina and Messi controlled the opening period, making France appear uninteresting. The second, though, belonged to Mbappe and France.
Following persistent Argentine pressure, Messi calmly converted a penalty shot against Hugo Lloris in the 23rd minute to give his team the lead. Since Argentina fully controlled play in the first half, it's fair to say that France didn't seem to have shown up at that time.
The second goal by Argentina was really stunning. It was a team goal that started in their own penalty area, and Messi provided the crucial pass to Mac Allister that tore the French defense asunder. Angel Di Maria then calmly lifted the ball over Lloris after receiving a magnificent cross from Mac Allister.
Didier Deschamps continually changed the lineup and structure to get Les Blues back in the game, giving France a mountain to climb in the second half. The game's dynamic was altered by his insertion of Muani and Thuram, whose physicality completely outmatched the Argentines.
Following a rare error by Otamendi against Thuram in the 80th minute, France got one back with a Mbappe penalty. Mbappe leveled Les Blues with a powerful strike 90 seconds later.
The game then went into overtime. Although Argentina had the better chances, Martinez was stopped by Acunya's perfectly placed block in the opening period as France controlled.
In the 108th minute, Messi, of course, finished off some outstanding work by Martinez, the substitute, to score the third goal for Argentina.
After a handball in the 118th minute, Mbappe tied the score again for France and became just the second player, after Geoff Hurst, to achieve a hat trick in a World Cup final.
In the three minutes of additional time at the conclusion of the second session of extra time, there was once more drama as Martinez made what could have been his biggest save of the competition to stop Muani at the very last second. Till another catastrophic incident occurred in Argentina.
Then came the penalties.
Martinez once more played the role of the hero by saving one and outwitting Tchoumani. It was essentially over when Paredes converted the following Argentine penalty. 7-5 is the final score.
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