Messi hat trick lifts Argentina past Algeria 3-0 at World Cup
What's new: The three goals pulled Lionel Messi level with Miroslav Klose atop the tournament's all-time scoring list.
Lionel Messi scored all three goals as defending champion Argentina opened its World Cup title defense with a 3-0 group-stage win over Algeria on Tuesday. The hat trick drew Messi level with Miroslav Klose as the men’s World Cup all-time leading scorer and pushed Argentina to the brink of the knockout round. Messi’s third goal capped a dominant night in which Algeria also had an early effort ruled out. The Argentina captain reached the mark 20 years after his first World Cup goal, in the 2006 opener against Serbia and Montenegro, and became Argentina’s oldest World Cup scorer, surpassing Martin Palermo’s mark.