Messi led Argentina to their third World Cup title in 2022 in Qatar after defeating France 4-2 on penalties in a nail-biting final.
By Kehinde Okeowo
Inter Miami forward, Lionel Messi, has said his country, Argentina, intends to fight and defend the FIFA World Cup trophy they won three years ago in Qatar.
He made this known while responding to questions during a recent interview with ESPN.
Messi is expected to once again lead the South American nation to the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will be held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
The 38-year-old striker and his compatriots defeated France 4-2 on penalties in a nail-biting final of the 2022 edition to lift Argentina’s third World Cup title.
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While talking about whether his side would be able to repeat their triumph in the next World Cup, Messi shared, “Can what happened in Qatar be repeated? Yes, I believe it’s a group that will try again, and will give everything and fight.”
He went on to remind the fans that in the World Cup, even a small nation can knock out a big nation by a slight margin. He explained, “The World Cup is very difficult; any team can make things tough for you and eliminate you. The ball might hit the post and go out, or hit the post and go in, and just like that, your journey ends or you lose on penalties.”
Messi concluded, “In the last World Cup, luck was on our side. Even though we were greatly superior in our matches against the Netherlands and France, we ended up going to penalties, and then we had the beast as a goalkeeper who made us win. But it can happen that you reach penalties and don’t win; it’s very hard to win the World Cup.”
Argentina has already qualified for the 2026 World Cup competition and will hope to defend its title.
