Paris Saint-Germain forward Lionel Messi was the star of the show in the Argentina national team’s 2-1 win over Australia in the 2022 FIFA World Cup Round of 16.
In his 1,000th career match, Messi was quite active when on the ball over the course of the contest. From the six total shots recorded to the four ground duels won, Australian defenders were regularly accustomed to seeing the Argentine forward maintain possession in the final third.
Australia did manage to make things interesting late with a goal, which Messi said after the match made life “difficult” for the reigning Copa America champions.
“We were able to take the lead, score the second and control the game,” Messi said in his post-match press conference.
“They scored against us and made it a little difficult for us at the end, but this is a World Cup and that’s how it is.”
Argentina now has a date with the Netherlands national team in the World Cup quarterfinal round on Friday.
