Looking to fill only career gap, Messi sets sights on football's ultimate prize

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) - Football superstar Lionel Messi will be back in the FIFA World Cup final on Sunday, again vying for the top spot after his silver medal with Argentina in 2014.

The Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) forward is looking to win the World Cup trophy for the first time in Qatar.

Argentina will have a showdown at 1500GMT against defending champions France at Lusail Stadium.

France will be on the pitch trying to win back-to-back titles.

The Les Bleus were champions at home in the 1998 tournament.

Argentina, one of South America’s football giants, have won two World Cups, in 1978 and 1986.

Argentina were also the runners-up three times, in 1930, 1990 and 2014.

Messi was on the squad during the 2014 tournament in Brazil when the Argentine national team narrowly missed out on the title.

The Messi-led team suffered a 1-0 loss to Germany and came home with a silver.

German midfielder Mario Gotze scored the winning goal in extra time for the Germans.

Captain Messi and his team went down in another failure at the 2018 World Cup.

In Russia 2018, France beat Argentina 4-3 in the last 16 to knock Messi and his team out of the running.

But in Qatar, Argentina have reached the final and Messi can add a missing trophy, one he has craved for years, to his cabinet if they win on Sunday.

Qatar may well be the final World Cup for Messi, now 35 years old, with the next tournament scheduled for 2026.

- Just one gap on his shelf

The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner has won every major trophy with Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain. He also captured a South American title with Argentina.

Messi, a longtime Barcelona forward, won four UEFA Champions League titles, three FIFA Club World Cups, three UEFA Super Cups, 10 Spanish La Liga, eight Spanish Super Cups, and seven Spanish Cups with the Spanish football powerhouse.

Since 2021 he has played for Paris Saint-Germain, where he helped them win the 2022 French Ligue 1 title and a French Super Cup.

Messi helped Argentina win the Copa America trophy in 2021, his first major title with the Argentine national team. The tournament is the top-tier football championship for national South American teams.

Argentina, along with Uruguay, boast the most titles.

Each nation has won the Copa America title 15 times since 1916.

Messi has played for Argentina since 2005 and scored 96 goals in 171 international caps.

- Teammates Messi vs. Mbappe in final

The 2022 final will see a clash between Paris Saint-Germain teammates Messi and Kylian Mbappe.

Messi will be competing for his first World Cup title, while Mbappe, 23, was crowned one of the champions in 2018.

The PSG regulars are also battling it out for the Golden Boot award.

In Qatar, Messi and Mbappe have scored five goals apiece and are the top goal scorers at the World Cup.

Julian Alvarez (Argentina) and Olivier Giroud (France) each have four goals.

All four are competing for the award given to the tournament’s highest scorer.

According to FIFA rules: "If two players are equal (on goals scored), the one with the most assists will win it. If two or more players are still equal, the one who has played the fewest minutes will triumph.”

Messi has three assists and has played 570 minutes in Qatar.

Mbappe has two assists and 477 minutes under his belt.