Argentina fans hail Messi after reaching World Cup final
Lionel Messi will be in the spotlight when Argentina do battle with France in the World Cup final this afternoon. The 35-year-old is poised to start for his country as they go in search of the ultimate prize. Express Sport will now take a look at the veteran’s record in finals for Argentina, Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona over the years.
Messi’s international career started when he fired Argentina to the Under-20 World Cup trophy back in 2005.
He scored twice as his country beat Nigeria 2-1 in the final, while he provided an assist as Argentina overcame the same opponents to win gold at the 2008 Olympics.
In the time since, however, Messi has sometimes struggled to make his mark in finals for his country.
He drew a blank as Argentina lost finals of the World Cup and Copa America to Germany and Chile in 2014, while he also was unable to score when Argentina beat Brazil to win the Copa America last year.
Messi did, however, provide two assists as Argentina beat Italy 3-0 in the Finalissima earlier in the year.
Overall record: Eight matches, four wins, two goals, three assists.
Lionel Messi has played in many finals ahead of Argentina and France World Cup clash (Image: GETTY)
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Lionel Messi was crushed when Argentina lost 2014 World Cup final to Germany (Image: GETTY)
Messi’s most-painful final defeat
Of course, today’s match between Argentina and France represents a second chance for Messi to win the World Cup.
He previously played on this stage in 2014, only for Germany to end up winning the golden, glittering trophy instead.
Messi admitted after the game that he was devastated by the loss, saying: "I don't care about the prize. I don't care about anything.
“Right now, nothing can console me - not the award or anything else. I wanted to take Argentina to the World Cup for all the people.
"I believe this World Cup deserved another final because we had chances. We reached the final... but we're disappointed not to have won this game. There's a lot of anger.
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Lionel Messi scored in 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals for Barcelona (Image: GETTY)
"There is sadness to finish in this way, I think we deserved a little more today.
“The better chances were ours and between the forwards we couldn't take them. We had three clear chances - mine, Pipa's (Gonzalo Higuain) and Rodrigo Palacio, but we couldn't get it."
And Messi had said before the final that he’d give up every individual award in order to win the World Cup.
He stated: "I would give all my personal records to be world champion.
"I'd prefer to win the World Cup than the Ballon d'Or. As a player, winning the World Cup is the biggest thing there is.
“It's something you dream of as a youngster and that dream never fades away."