Match report
Messi hat-trick sinks Algeria as Argentina open World Cup with rout
Argentina began their World Cup Group Stage campaign with a 3-0 victory over Algeria at Arrowhead Stadium, a scoreline built entirely around Lionel Messi. The result gave Lionel Scaloni's side a perfect start against a Vladimir Petkovic team looking to open on the front foot.
AI-assisted match report written from official match data.
Messi opened the scoring in the 17th minute, finishing an assist from Rodrigo De Paul to send Argentina in ahead at half-time, with the score reading 1-0. He struck again on 60 minutes to double the lead, then completed his hat-trick in the 76th minute after being teed up by Nicolás González, turning a comfortable advantage into a one-sided contest.
Argentina were the more clinical side despite Algeria holding a slight edge in possession at 52 percent to 48. Messi's side had 10 shots to Algeria's seven, but the difference in quality was stark: six of Argentina's efforts were on target compared with none from Algeria, and their expected goals figure of 1.23 dwarfed Algeria's 0.31.
Messi scored all three of Argentina's goals, earning a maximum rating of 10.0 for his performance.
Algeria failed to register a single shot on target across the match, underlining how toothless their attacking threat proved to be.
Argentina beat Algeria 3–0 (half-time 1–0).
Argentina met Algeria in the World Cup (Group Stage - 1). Kick-off was Wednesday, 17 June 2026, 01:00 UTC at Arrowhead Stadium. Referee: Szymon Marciniak.
Key moments
- 17' Goal: Lionel Messi (assist: Rodrigo De Paul) — 1–0 · Watch Lionel Messi's goal video (17')
- 60' Goal: Lionel Messi — 2–0 · Watch Lionel Messi's goal video (60')
- 76' Goal: Lionel Messi (assist: Nicolás González) — 3–0 · Watch Lionel Messi's goal video (76')
Starting line-ups
Argentina (4-4-2)
Algeria (4-3-3)
About this match
On this page: the Argentina vs Algeria final score and result, goal highlights and video clips of every goal, who scored, starting lineups, match stats and the full match report from this World Cup fixture.
- Who scored and when — a goal-by-goal timeline of the match.
- Match stats — possession, shots, expected goals (xG), corners and cards.
- Starting lineups and player ratings for both teams.
- Head-to-head record and recent form for both sides.
- Watch Lionel Messi's goal against Algeria (17').
- Watch Lionel Messi's goal against Algeria (60').
- Watch Lionel Messi's goal against Algeria (76').
Watch the goals: goal highlights and video clips of every goal from Argentina 3–0 Algeria. Explore more on the Argentina and Algeria team pages or the World Cup page.
Quick answers
›What was the final score of Argentina vs Algeria?
Argentina beat Algeria 3–0 (half-time 1–0).
›Who scored in Argentina vs Algeria?
Lionel Messi (17') for Argentina; Lionel Messi (60') for Argentina; Lionel Messi (76') for Argentina.
›Where can I watch Argentina vs Algeria highlights?
Goal highlights and video clips from Argentina 3–0 Algeria are on this page — open the videos tab to watch every goal.