Argentina to Advance to World Cup Finals
After World Cup 2022 favorites Spain and Brazil were both unceremoniously eliminated from the competition, Argentina will not have the same fate. The team — the final one remaining from Latin America — will advance to the finals after beating Croatia in their semi-final match on Tuesday, Dec. 13.
The Argentinian men’s national soccer team has progressed to the finals of the World Cup after beating Croatia. Abigail Keenan/Unsplash
Messi’s World Cup reign
Argentina’s famed forward Lionel Messi became the number one goal scorer of World Cup finals in the team’s semi-finals match against Croatia this week. The previous record of 10 goals was held by fellow Argentinian, Gabriel Batistuta. By the end of the game, Messi had racked up 11 goals throughout the tournament, putting him in sixth place for most goals ever.
German footballer and now manager Miroslav Klose holds the top position, having scored a total of 16 goals during the World Cup. Brazilians Ronaldo and Pelé are also in the top five. Messi’s record-breaking shot was a penalty taken in the first half of the game, which Argentina won 3-0 overall, much to the disappointment of Croatia fans.
In 2018, Croatia made it to the finals but lost against France; they will not have a chance for a rematch this tournament. However, the team still performed well, managing to knock out Canada, Japan, Belgium and finally, Brazil. The Brazil loss was a particularly huge upset as the team fought desperately for a place in the finals after a string of unsuccessful World Cup showings.
For Argentina, it has been a different story. The team, which has its own storied history with the tournament, always has a lot of attention from around the world. Though the team lost in its early match against Saudi Arabia, they have continued to perform admirably throughout the rest of the games.
Despite his 35 years of age, Messi is still in top form and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, he is in the running with 23-year-old Kylian Mbappé (France) for the award of the Golden Boot. He has received many comparisons with Argentina’s beloved player, Diego Maradona, and has already surpassed his goal tally. At the finals on Sunday, Messi will also break the record for most appearances in World Cup matches of all time. He is currently tied with German player Lothar Matthaus.
Messi first played in soccer’s most famous tournament in 2006 as a substitute. He played again in 2010 but performed poorly in the team then managed by Maradona. Though his World Cup showings have had ups and downs, he is still Argentina’s top scorer of all time, surpassing even Batistuta, having scored 94 goals for the men’s national team.
How have odds changed for the World Cup 2022?
As we near the finals on Dec. 17, the odds for who will win the famed tournament continue to shift. After eliminating Croatia, Argentina is now the favorite at -125, according to FOX Bet. They entered the semifinals at +140, representing a numerically small but significant change.
France is still at +100, and Morocco has improved their odds greatly from +25000 at the start of the tournament to +900 after eliminating England and Spain. However, nothing can be known for sure until France and Morocco duke it out for their spot in the finals.
