Messi: Argentina have 'many' things to correct
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- Argentina beat Cape Verde 3-2 in extra time in the round of 32 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, advancing to the round of 16 for the sixth consecutive World Cup.
- Messi opened the scoring but acknowledged Argentina have "many" things to correct, praising the 67th-ranked Cape Verde as a team "that hadn't lost to Spain and Uruguay for a reason."
- Cape Verde became the smallest nation by population (525,000 — fewer than any U.S. state) to reach a World Cup knockout round; Sidny Lopes Cabral's stunning extra-time goal briefly leveled the match before Diney Borges's own goal off Cristian Romero's header gave Argentina the lead for good.
- Argentina extended their team-record winning streak to 11 consecutive matches.
- Messi became the all-time leading scorer in men's World Cup history with 20 goals — two clear of Kylian Mbappé — and scored in a record eighth straight World Cup match; he leads the 2026 Golden Boot race with seven goals.
- Argentina will face Egypt in the round of 16 on Tuesday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
- Manager Lionel Scaloni said he would address the negatives with his players but praised the team for never "letting our arms down."
Why it matters: The defending champions needed extra time to survive a team ranked 67th in the world with a population smaller than Wyoming, a result that exposes real form concerns heading into the knockout stage against Egypt. Meanwhile, Messi's 20th World Cup goal pulled him two clear of Mbappé in the all-time race, a record that now looks out of reach for his generation.
