World Cup 2022: Lionel Messi Beats Archrival Cristiano Ronaldo to New Record

• Lionel Messi appears to be bringing daylight between himself and his eternal rival Cristiano Ronaldo following his immaculate performance at the World Cup
• On the occasion of his 1000th career appearance, Messi proved his mettle once again, guiding Argentina to the quarterfinals
• He would hope to continue on the same tangent when La Albiceleste squares off against the Netherlands for a place in the semifinals on Friday, December 9

Lionel Messi has urged eternal nemesis, Cristiano Ronaldo, to yet another record on the back of his masterclass performance against Australia on Saturday, December 3.

Messi scored and picked up the Budweiser man-of-the-match award in his 1000th career appearance while guiding Argentina to the quarterfinals of the World Cup in the process.

His goal against the Socceroos marked his first-ever strike in the knockout phase of the Mundial, taking his World Cup tally to nine goals, one more than Diego Maradona and Ronaldo.

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As if that was not enough, the 35-year-old further embellished his status as the better of the Ronaldo vs Messi debate when he was adjudged the man of the match against Australia.

The feat takes his man-of-the-match awards at the global showpiece to eight, the most of any player since it began in 2002.

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Both Leo Messi and CR7 were locked on seven official awards, however, following the former's most recent award, he overtakes his archrival in the standings.

Messi leads the overall chart of the most man of the match awards followed by Cristiano Ronaldo with seven and Arjen Robben with six, according to MessivsRonaldo App.

Messi beats Maradona to record

Lionel Messi's 35th-minute goal against Australia in the last 16 of the 2022 World Cup saw him surpass Diego Maradona's record at the tournament.

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Messi produced an impressive performance to inspire the Argentines to a hard-fought win against a determined Australian side.

The game against the Asian giants was Messi's 1000th career appearance, and the well-taken goal was his 789th. It was also the first in the knockout stage of the World Cup.

Messi scores in milestone match

Earlier, Sports Brief reported that Lionel Messi scored his first-ever World Cup knockout goal on the occasion of his 1000th game in what has been an illustrious football career.

After suffering a setback in their opening game against Saudi Arabia, Messi inspired La Albiceleste to the knockout phase, defeating Mexico and Poland by 2-0 respectively.

On the occasion of his milestone appearance, Messi further embellished his status as one of the best, if not the best, ever footballer the sport has witnessed.