Will Messi bring victory to Argentina with his last World Cup?

Argentina is one of the favorites to win the 2022 World Cup, coming from a winning strike and an impressive performance during the qualification. Lionel Messi, undeniably the biggest soccer star in the world, has played in four World Cups but has not managed to bring a victory back to Argentina. Could this be the year?

The last time Argentina was close to winning a World Cup was in Brazil, in 2014. The squad played the finals against Germany after the European team eliminated the host in a game with 7 to 1 goals. Argentina held Germany until the extension time when they made the winning point in minute 113.

The participation of Argentina in the 2018 World Cup in Russia was shorter than the previous one. France eliminated them in the last 16 with a difference of just one goal. The match ended with a 4 to 3 score. The European team then won the international championship.

According to The Independent, Lionel Scaloni took the job as coach for Argentina when several well-known and experienced coaches turned down the job in the aftermath of Russia 2018. Scaloni rebuilt the team and managed two successes: the 2021 Copa America and the qualification to the 2022 World Cup.

Scaloni helped the team find its rhythm. That was evident during the 2021 Copa America against Brazil. After that, they played the final for the Champions COMEBOL - UEFA cup and won against Italy.

Argentina qualified for the 2022 World Cup in second place under Brazil. Both teams had almost double the number of points as the third and fourth qualifiers, Uruguay and Ecuador. Neither of them lost a single game during the qualifying season.

Argentina never lost a game during the qualifying season for the 2022 World Cup. But the team's winning streak was longer: they had not lost a game since the semifinals of the 2019 Copa America against Brazil. That is 35 consecutive games without losing.

Having a winning streak is not rare for a team packed with stars. Recently, Scaloni announced the players representing Argentina in the 2022 World Cup. 25 of the 26 members traveling to Qatar play for major European leagues in clubs like Paris St. Germain, Manchester United, Inter Milan, or Juventus.

Lionel Messi is arguably one of the greatest soccer players in the world. Argentina's captain has broken record after record in Europe. However, he had not won a significant title with the national team until the 2021 Copa America. According to The Independent, that ended the team's 28-year quest for relevant silverware.

Emiliano Martínez plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League club Aston Villa. The 30-year-old player won the Golden Glove during the 2021 Copa America, which he helped win. He is one of the two Aston Villa vice-captains and was named Aston Villa Supporters' Player of the Season in 2020.

Cristian Romero plays as a center-back for Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur. The 25-year-old is Argentina's defensive leader and, according to The Independent's journalist Luke Baker, he is the brake-out talent to watch in the South American squad.

24-year-old Lisandro Martínez plays center-back for Manchester United. Before that, he played for Ajax, where he received a player of the match recognition in his second game. He was part of the team that won the 2021 Copa America and the 2022 CONMEBOL - UEFA Championship against Italy.

One of the surprises of the Argentinian grid was Paulo Dybala. The player injured his thigh while taking a penalty for Roma. Dybala has not played since October 9, despite being in fantastic shape before that: he scored in the five previous games.

Argentina is traveling to Qatar with a mix of experienced players, such as Messi or Di María, and younger breakout talents like Cristian Romero. According to The Independent, coach Scaloni "kept Messi as a focal point but worked around his limitations in the twilight of his career," which may be the perfect solution to score the World Cup championship.

Bringing the cup back to Argentina would be more significant than it seems. Star player, and Argentinian idol, Messi announced that this World Cup should be his last in an interview with ESPN. The 35-year-old striker admitted feeling nervous about the championship but said that Argentina is at the right moment and has a well-rounded team.

Meanwhile, the FIFA 2023 videogame simulator predicted that Argentina would win this World Cup after playing in the finals against Brazil. It is only a simulation, but it predicted the outcome in 2010 (Spain), 2014 (Germany), and 2018 (France).