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Messi's hat-trick, Mbappé's brace, Haaland's double: World Cup qualifying matches deliver goal feast!

From Hankyoreh · () Korean

Translated from Korean, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick, Kylian Mbappé netted two goals, and Erling Haaland also scored twice in a single day of World Cup qualifying matches.
  • Messi's hat-trick made him the oldest player to achieve this feat in the World Cup and tied him with Miroslav Klose for the most World Cup goals.
  • Mbappé set new French national team records for most goals in a single match and most World Cup goals, while Haaland scored his debut World Cup goals in Norway's victory.

The football world witnessed an extraordinary display of scoring prowess on June 17th (KST) as top strikers Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, and Erling Haaland all delivered spectacular performances in World Cup qualifying matches.

Messi, who scored a hat-trick, moved into a tie for first place with the most World Cup goals, overturning the results after Mbappé scored multiple goals to rank third in all-time World Cup scoring.

— Article TextDescribes the competitive goal-scoring battle between top players.

Lionel Messi, playing in his sixth World Cup, announced his presence with a stunning hat-trick against Algeria in Kansas City, Missouri. This marked Messi's first World Cup hat-trick and set a new record as the oldest player to achieve this feat at 39, surpassing Cristiano Ronaldo's record from the 2018 tournament. His three goals also tied him with Germany's Miroslav Klose for the most career World Cup goals at 16, positioning him to potentially take the sole lead in upcoming matches.

Argentina's dominant 3-0 victory, powered by Messi's brilliance, brings them a step closer to defending their World Cup title, a feat not achieved since Brazil in 1958 and 1962. Despite a recent hamstring injury, Messi demonstrated his readiness, having scored in a warm-up match against Iceland just days prior.

Messi, 39, also set a new record for the oldest player to score a hat-trick in the World Cup, surpassing Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo (33) in the 2018 Russia tournament.

— Article TextHighlights Lionel Messi's record-breaking performance.

Meanwhile, Kylian Mbappé etched his name further into French football history. In France's 3-1 victory over Senegal, Mbappé scored twice, bringing his national team tally to 57 goals, surpassing Olivier Giroud's record. He also reached 14 World Cup goals, breaking Just Fontaine's long-standing record for the most World Cup goals by a French player.

Mbappé scored his 57th and 58th international goals, and his 13th and 14th World Cup goals.

— Article TextDetails Kylian Mbappé's achievements in the match.

Adding to the day's goal-scoring frenzy, Erling Haaland marked his World Cup debut with two goals against Iraq in Boston, Massachusetts. His brace was instrumental in Norway's 4-1 win, a significant achievement for a nation that hadn't qualified for the World Cup since 1998. Haaland had previously led Norway to qualification by scoring 16 goals in eight European qualifiers.

Haaland scored the opening and winning goals in the match against Iraq, leading Norway's 4-1 victory.

— Article TextDescribes Erling Haaland's contribution to Norway's win.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Hankyoreh in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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