Messi and Angel di Maria netted for the South American champions at the Lusail stadium, but Kylian Mabappe’s hat-trick made the score 3-3 at the end of extra time and the game went to penalties, where Argentina prevailed 4-2.
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Lionel Scaloni played alongside Lionel Messi at the 2006 World Cup in Germany when the latter was making his debut on the global stage. And then, when La Albiceleste exited the tournament in the Round of 16 stage of the 2018 tournament in Russia, courtesy of losing 4-3 to France, the 44-year-old was sitting in the dugout beside Jorge Sampoli. On Sunday, the Argentine tactician paid off the old scores after his team, led by Messi, got the better of the French side in a thrilling final and lifted the World Cup title for the third time. Messi and Angel di Maria netted for the South American champions at the Lusail stadium, but Kylian Mabappe’s hat-trick made the score 3-3 at the end of extra time and the game went to penalties, where Argentina prevailed 4-2.
Scaloni’s decision to start Di Maria on the left flank in a 4-3-3 formation in the final was a masterstroke as the Juventus-man was the best player for Argentina in the first half. The 34-year-old ran riot at the French defence. Jules Kounde and Ousmane Dembele were taken to the cleaners as the veteran won the penalty, which Messi converted inside the opening 23 minutes, before finishing off a sublime team move in the 36th-minute. This was not the first time that Scaloni had tinkered with his formation and game plan according to the situation, in the tournament.
Against the Netherlands in the quarter-finals, the Argentine boss opted for a 3-5-2 formation to cancel out Holland’s front-three and the wing-backs Marcos Acuna and Nahuel Molina played a key role in both the goals La Albiceleste scored. And then, in the semi-final against Croatia, the former Atalanta defender switched to a 4-4-2 formation, which was loaded with midfielders. His decision to include four central midfielders in the lineup, Rodrigo de Paul, Enzo Fernandez, Leandro Paredes and Alexis Mac Alister, might have raised a few eyebrows, but it proved to be a masterstroke as they nullified Croatia’s world class midfield-trio of Luka Modric, Marcelo Brozovic and Mateo Kovacic. Scaloni’s team displayed clinical counter-attacking football and scored three goals, courtesy of a brace from Julian Alvarez and one goal from Messi, to enter the final
Scaloni was part of the Argentina squad, which lost to Germany in the quarter-finals of the 2006 World Cup in Germany. The defender played just seven matches for the national team before retiring in 2015. Although he had an average career as a player, the former Lazio player was able to recreate the magic for Argentina as a coach, guiding his team to their first trophy in 28-years, when they beat Brazil in the final to lift the 2020 Copa America title. He brought a 35-game unbeaten run to Qatar but, to the surprise of everyone, La Albiceleste started off with a 2-1 defeat to Saudi Arabia in their opener.
One thing that distinguished Argentina during the World Cup is the sense of togetherness. La Albiceleste didn’t have star-studded team, like France, Portugal and Spain, but Scaloni was able to assemble a set of hard-working players, who were willing to give their heart out. He was able to extract the best out of a 35-year-old Messi, by deploying Rodrigo de Paul on the right side of midfield, as a cover to the PSG-man, while the likes of Alexis Mac Allister and Enzo Fernandez were always available to link up with the former Barcelona-man. Meanwhile, striker Julian Alvarez has been a revelation, as the 22-year-old worked his socks off in every game he played. Scaloni deserves a lot of credit for the way the team has been inspired throughout the tournament.
