ARG vs FRA Final, FIFA World Cup 2022: Is this what dreams are made of? Lionel Messi has finally accomplished his biggest goal, his great determination has led him to the World Cup trophy and he will savor this moment for the rest of his life. After 36 odd years, Messi has repeated what Diego Maradona had done in 1986. In one of the greatest soccer game to be ever played, Argentina have pulled off a miraculous heist. The Lusail had been Messi's favourite hunting ground in this year's tournament and the finals against France was certainly a testament to it.
Argentina's wait is over and so is Leo Messi's. Maradona's prodigal son has finally fulfilled his destiny. This is the first time in 20 years that a non-European team has lifted the World Cup. Argentina's 2022 World Cup campaign has been nothing else but legendary. It is the Lusail Stadium where Argentina suffered a massive heartbreak at the hands of Saudi Arabia in their opening game, but their resurgence in the tournament is something that generations will talk about forever.
In the first half, Argentina looked pretty dominant, they meant business and nothing else. Till the 45th minute, Argentina had taken 5 shots on target and France had none. Messi and penalty kicks have been a beautiful love story in this edition of the World Cup and the finals were no different. Courtesy of a spot kick, Leo Messi opened Argentina's account and had France stunned. Before France could recover from this shock, Messi's compatriot Angel Di Maria scored one more and left France flabbergasted. Come the second half, France altered their playing style completely. Much to their respite, Mbappe was awarded a spot kick and he didn't miss it. The Paris Saint Germain veteran just took 97 seconds to pile the pain on Argentina. The high-octane clash headed to extra time where the action intensified.
The second half of the extra time was certainly not for the faint-hearted, Messi earned the valuable lead for Argentina, but Mbappe was not in the mood to give up. He kept France alive in the contest as he scored his first World Cup final hat-trick. Argentina and France held their nerves as they headed into the spot kicks. Argentina brought their best to the table as they beat France 4-2 on penalties.
Game Analysis
Shots
- Argentina: 20
- France: 10
Shots on target
- Argentina: 10
- France: 5
Possession
- Argentina: 55%
- France: 44%
Passes
- Argentina: 635
- France: 531
Pass accuracy
- Argentina: 82%
- France: 77%
Fouls
- Argentina: 26
- France: 19
Yellow cards
- Argentina: 5
- France: 3
Offsides
- Argentina: 4
- France: 4
Corners
- Argentina: 6
- France: 5
Lionel Messi has finally done it. 6029 days after his World Cup debut, Messi finally gets to lift the trophy and now he will happily leave the international stage as he has accomplished it all and has a career that the entire world is in awe of.
