It was the 17th minute of the match. Messi unleashed a powerful shot from about 25 yards out—and scored. This marked the first goal for both Messi and Argentina in this World Cup. While Argentine fans across the globe were beaming with joy, the cameras captured Messi in tears.

Was this the joy of scoring in the opening match of what could be his final World Cup journey, or was there another reason? After the match, Messi revealed that the reason wasn’t football-related, but personal.

Messi left the pitch shortly after scoring a hat-trick against Algeria. Speaking in the mixed zone after the game, he addressed the tears: “To be honest, it has nothing to do with football. I’ve had a very difficult few days due to some personal reasons. I am grateful to everyone on the team. As always, they stood by me. They gave me a lot of strength to overcome this situation—that’s all there is to it.”
Argentina won 3–0.

Analyzing the match tactics and Algeria’s strengths, the Argentine captain said, “We knew it was going to be a tough match. They have some very good, fast, and aggressive players. If we had let them have the ball, they could have created chances; however, even when we didn’t have possession, we maintained our shape and stayed in a good position. Fortunately, we took an early lead and kept the match under control, even though we didn’t play the entire game with our usual rhythm of ball possession.”

Messi played the full first half of the Argentina-Algeria match. He put the ball in the net just five minutes into the game. Cheers erupted in the stands, but the celebration was cut short moments later when the assistant referee raised his flag. Subsequently, a goal by Algeria was also disallowed. He then scored the opening goal in the 17th minute.

According to Messi, the first half was challenging for Argentina: “It was a bit difficult (the first half). But the second half was different—which is quite natural. Matches in any tournament—especially the opening games of a World Cup—are always tough.” We had the experience of the last World Cup (the first match). And in this World Cup, it is clear that no one is going to let the other off easily.