Lionel Messi Ties Klose’s All-Time World Cup Scoring Record With Hat-Trick Against Algeria — Sunday Oliseh Calls Him ‘Messi AI’

Lionel Messi marked Argentina’s 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign with a hat-trick against Algeria at Kansas City Stadium on Wednesday, June 17, steering the reigning champions to a 3-0 Group J victory and pushing his all-time World Cup goal tally to 16 — level with German legend Miroslav Klose’s tournament record.

The performance, delivered just days before Messi’s 39th birthday, prompted a wave of tributes from across the football world. Among the most notable came from former Super Eagles captain and manager Sunday Oliseh, who reflected on the display via his Global Football Insights platform.

“This is Lionel Messi AI. There is no other way to describe this. Never in the history of football has a 38-year-old man performed as Messi did yesterday. Not only did he score three goals in an opening match, but the manner in which he scored them is remarkable,” Oliseh stated.

Oliseh, himself remembered for one of the most celebrated goals in Nigerian football history — a thunderous long-range strike against Spain at the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France — paid particular attention to the quality of Messi’s third goal. “A childhood friend of mine has consistently referred to Messi as the oracle for the past 15 years. Based on what I observed yesterday, I will now refer to him as the Lionel Messi AI… The way he struck the ball for the third goal, the precision, the movement,” the former Ajax midfielder noted.

Messi’s equalisation of Klose’s record carries significant historical weight. The German striker set his mark of 16 World Cup goals across four tournaments between 1998 and 2014, a tally that had stood as the outright record for over a decade. Messi, competing in what is widely understood to be his final World Cup, now stands level with one more group stage match remaining in Group J.

The reaction extended well beyond Oliseh. Brazilian icon Ronaldo Nazário, according to reports, used the occasion to explicitly declare Messi the undisputed Greatest Player of All Time, urging the football world to confront the debate with finality. The endorsement from Ronaldo Nazário — himself a two-time World Cup winner and three-time FIFA World Player of the Year — added further weight to the chorus of praise directed at the eight-time Ballon d’Or holder.

Messi, who captained Argentina to Copa América titles in 2021 and 2024 as well as the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, continues to operate at the international level despite his age. His involvement at this tournament had attracted scrutiny given the physical demands of the competition, but the Algeria performance appeared to dispel immediate concerns about his capacity to influence matches at the highest level.

Argentina will continue their Group J campaign with the result placing them in a strong early position as they look to defend the title they claimed in Qatar four years ago.