Even on an off night, Messi sets new marks.
His goals will grab the headlines, yet the game also brought a few he’d rather not claim.
Argentina earned a penalty when Lautaro Martínez was fouled, but Messi sent the spot-kick wide.
“There was a moment where I was very angry about the penalty, because I missed it and I took it very, very badly,” said Messi. “Luckily we were able to reverse that situation, take the lead and get the three points.”
He became the first player to miss a penalty at the 2026 World Cup and now holds the records for most penalties taken (seven) and missed (three) in tournament history, excluding shootouts.
For Argentina, he has also failed to convert six of 31 penalties.
By making amends with a brace, this was the first competitive match for Argentina in which Messi scored after also missing a penalty.
“Messi is human after all, he’s allowed the odd mistake,” added Murphy.
Perhaps it was destined that his record-breaking strike would come in classic Messi fashion.
“He might have missed it on purpose,” Murphy joked. “Maybe breaking the record was meant for a better goal.”
South American football expert Tim Vickery added: “The gods of football obviously didn’t want him to break the record with a penalty, they wanted him to break the record with a goal from open play.
“Argentina have built the team around him and I just don’t want the carnival to end.”
Despite so many milestones, there are still more within reach.
Next up could be the all-time World Cup assists record, with Messi currently level with Maradona on eight.
Argentina’s final group game against Jordan (Sunday, 03:00 BST) offers his next chance to write more football history.