Messi and his colleagues will be seeking to win the tournament several decades after Argentina star, Maradona lifted the trophy in 1986
By Kehinde Okeowo
Argentina star, Lionel Messi, is set to appear at the finals of the 2022 edition of the World Cup being hosted by oil-rich Qatar, which began on November 20.
The tournament is scheduled to be the last with 32 participating teams, with the field set to increase to 48 teams for the 2026 edition when it moves to North America in four years.
Morocco, the revelation of the tournament, after becoming the first African nation to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup will further seek to make history when they face Croatia in the third-place match on Saturday.
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The Atlas Lions were relegated to the loser’s match after losing 2-0 to the World Champions, France, in the semi-finals, while Argentina dispatched Croatia after scoring three unreplied goals.
The encounter which is billed to take place at the Khalifa International Stadium at 4.pm Nigeria time will be officiated by Abdulrahman Al-Jassim from Qatar.
Meanwhile, Argentina will be jostling for the World Cup trophy when they take on the defending champions, France on Sunday, December 18 at the Lusail Stadium.
Messi and his colleagues will be aiming to win the tournament after close to four decades of waiting, while Dechamps’s men will be attempting to win a back to back World Cup.
Polish referee, Szymon Marciniak who will also be making history as the first man from his country to take charge of a World Cup finals, will officiate the highly anticipated match.
He will not be the only Polish official on parade on the day, as he will be assisted by his compatriots, Paweł Sokolnicki and Tomasz Listkiewicz.
