📸 After record, Messi's photo dump hails Argentina in the Copa | OneFootball

With the two goals scored in Argentina’s 2-0 win over Austria on Monday (22), Lionel Messi moved clear as the top scorer in World Cup history with 18 goals.

After the victory that mathematically and early secured the hermanos a place in the next stage of the tournament, still at the stadium, the iconic No. 10 praised the strength of the reigning world champions.

"It was spectacular. The penalty could have made the lead bigger. You never know, but I’m happy with the result, with my contribution and with the team’s work. Very happy with the win. It was a tough, hard-fought victory that gives us peace of mind for what’s ahead. Every match is very tense, so we’re very happy with the six points and qualification."

"We knew it wouldn’t be an easy match. It was a very tight, very tense game, difficult to play. The important thing is qualification. Our plan is to win every match because we are Argentina. But it’s not easy. When the group is together, we love playing together and we love competing."

"This whole group, this whole squad lives this way. And we have to live like this throughout this whole stage. When this group comes together, we come to compete. But we also enjoy being together, we enjoy competing, training, living day to day. And the fans enjoy it that way too. We’re going to keep living in this rhythm, in this connection. The fans too, who keep dreaming of the title. But we’ll go step by step. It’s a long tournament. And we have to prepare for every match."

Later, Messi used his Instagram profile to celebrate the win that will be remembered as the one that earned him yet another record in world football. 

In addition to becoming the player with the most goals in World Cup history (18 goals), Lionel also has the most World Cup matches played (28), the most World Cup wins (18), and the most minutes played in the tournament (2,489).

📸 Check out Messi’s dump after the record:

"Another win in a complicated match, one that helps us take one more little step forward..."

Photos: Reproduction/Instagram.com/leomessi

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.

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