Lionel Messi expressed that Argentina has “numerous” areas needing improvement following a tense 3-2 victory over Cape Verde during extra time on Friday night at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, highlighting the team’s deficiencies throughout the round-of-32 match.
“Today, we put in a significant effort, as we always do, playing well and poorly, just as we typically say,” Messi noted after the match. “However, the key now is to rest, think about what lies ahead, and aim to take positives from today’s game. Beyond just securing qualification, I believe there were positives because we executed some good plays, yet we also need to address the many mistakes we made today.”
Messi scored the opening goal with a brilliant strike, but Cape Verde equalized, sending the match into extra time. As Argentina took the lead again, the island nation levelled the score with a remarkable goal from Sidny Lopes Cabral.
Argentina secured the win thanks to an own goal by Cape Verde’s Diney Borges, resulting from a header by Cristian Romero, allowing Argentina to advance to the round of 16 for the sixth consecutive World Cup.
Cape Verde made history in the 2026 World Cup by becoming the smallest nation to reach the knockout stage of the tournament. With a population of 525,000, it has fewer inhabitants than any U.S. state, with Wyoming being the closest at 576,000.
Messi praised the 67th-ranked team, emphasizing how they challenged Argentina throughout the match. “We knew it would be a very tough match; this team hadn’t lost to Spain and Uruguay for a reason,” Messi remarked. “We believed we’d find our rhythm after scoring first and relax, but it was the opposite. We lost possession, sat back, struggled to press, and allowed them to exploit their strengths. We anticipated it would be difficult; this is a knockout tournament, and nothing is given easily.”
“We understood that this World Cup would not be easy; it’s incredibly competitive, and each match will be a challenge.”
Argentina’s head coach, Lionel Scaloni, mentioned in his post-match press conference that he would discuss the game’s shortcomings with the players. “There are no easy opponents. Congratulations to Cape Verde,” Scaloni stated. “I will address the negatives with the players, but we will focus on the positives, which is that we never gave up.”
With this win, Argentina has set a new record for the longest winning streak in team history, reaching 11 consecutive victories.
Messi also extended his lead in the history of men’s World Cup scoring with 20 goals—two more than Kylian Mbappé. He notched a goal in his record eighth consecutive World Cup match and has now scored 12 goals in his last eight World Cup appearances.
Leading the Golden Boot race for this year’s tournament with seven goals, Messi is one ahead of Mbappé. Argentina will next face Egypt in the round of 16 on Tuesday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.