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Lionel Messi’s scoring streak continued Friday, and he made it look routine.
His bid for a second straight World Cup title stayed alive, too — though that was anything but routine.
Messi’s goal in the 29th minute was the 20th of his World Cup career, extending his record and moving him two ahead of France’s Kylian Mbappé on the all-time list. It opened a wild night in which Argentina survived a massive underdog, 3-2 in extra time.
Messi, who has now scored in a record eight consecutive World Cup games dating to Argentina’s run to the 2022 title, appeared relieved afterward and praised Cape Verde’s defense for making life difficult.
“We did good things,” Messi said in his native Spanish, “and we have to correct the bad things.”
Messi has seven goals in this World Cup — one more than Mbappé in the Golden Boot race — and 12 goals over his eight-game World Cup scoring streak. He has been brilliant, and Argentina has needed every bit of it.
“For me, it represents a lot to be friends with him,” said Rodrigo De Paul, Messi’s teammate with Argentina and Inter Miami. “Friendship is one of the most important things we have, and I consider myself fortunate to be there, to share these moments with him.”
And there have been plenty of moments.
Messi had the game’s first real chance Friday, his trademark left foot sending a shot skidding across the face of goal and just wide of the right post in the 15th minute. Three minutes later, after being fouled, he lined up a 25-yard free kick that Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha handled easily.
The pressure kept building, and soon Messi broke through for a 1-0 lead. He timed his run perfectly onto a ball slipped into the box by defender Lisandro Martinez, stayed onside, controlled the pass and lifted a shot over Vozinha’s left shoulder from close range for his 124th international goal. Only Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, with 146, has more.
Messi spread his arms and pointed toward Martinez in salute before teammates swarmed him in celebration.
Argentina entered as a heavy favorite — some sportsbooks listed the defending champions at minus-3500, meaning a bettor would have to risk $3,500 to win $100 — and Messi’s goal seemed to signal that the floodgates might open.
Instead, Cape Verde answered twice to tie the match at 1-1 and 2-2, and Messi helped set up the decisive goal with a corner kick that ricocheted off a cluster of heads and into the net midway through the second half of extra time.
“As this team has shown many times, and as I’ve said many times, it competes,” Messi said. “And we competed to the end.”
The Golden Boot race could go down to the wire as well, with the four leaders now all safely into the Round of 16.
Messi and Mbappé are hardly the only contenders. Norway’s Erling Haaland and England’s Harry Kane each had five goals entering Friday, while four players — France’s Ousmane Dembele, Spain’s Mikel Oyarzabal, Brazil’s Vinícius Júnior and Senegal’s Ismaila Sarr — had four. Sarr is out of the race because Senegal has been eliminated.
Norway, England and France have advanced to the Round of 16; Argentina and Messi, the Inter Miami star widely regarded as the greatest player ever, now join them — barely.
“Our team did everything we could to win the game,” Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha said.
Messi has never won the Golden Boot. He finished second with seven goals — one behind Mbappé — while leading Argentina to the 2022 World Cup title, and he tied for third with four goals in 2014.
If the tournament ends with a tie atop the scoring chart, FIFA will use assists as the first tiebreaker and fewest minutes played as the second. Entering Friday, that gave Mbappé the edge over Messi because of his 2-0 lead in assists.
For now, though, Messi leads the scoring race. More important, he is still chasing another World Cup title.
“I hope you now realize there is no easy opponent,” Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said.
