Argentina won the World Cup for the first time since 1986
courtesy of a pulsating penalty shootout victory over France
in the 2022 final in Qatar this evening.
One of the greatest World Cup finals of all time went all the
way to penalties as France launched an incredible late
comeback to force extra time, which then threw up even more
drama before the shootout settled it.
Gonzalo Montiel was the unlikely hero for Argentina as he
slotted the winning spot kick, after Emiliano Martinez had
earlier saved from Kingsley Coman and contributed to
Aurelien Tchouameni’s costly miss.
Lionel Messi had given Argentina the lead with a record-
breaking goal from the spot in the first half, before Angel Di
Maria gave the dominant South Americans a deserved two-
goal advantage when applying the final touch to a stunning
team move.
An out-of-sorts France offered little in reply, becoming the
first team to fail to have a single shot or touch in the
opposition area during the first half of a World Cup final,
while Didier Deschamps hauled off Olivier Giroud and
Ousmane Dembele before half time.
Indeed, it was not until the 80th minute that the defending
champions had their first shot on target of the contest, and that
sparked an incredible comeback.
Kylian Mbappe, who had barely had a kick to that point,
slotted home from the penalty spot after Nicolas Otamendi
had brought down Randal Kolo Muani inside the area, and
just 97 seconds later France were sensationally level.
The Paris Saint-Germain star volleyed a stunning goal into the
far corner after a swift one-two with Marcus Thuram,
ultimately forcing extra time despite Messi having one final
effort in the 97th minute.
Messi did get his second goal of the game in the second half
of extra time as he scrambled the ball over the line, but his
PSG teammate Mbappe was not to be denied and incredibly
equalised again from the spot seven minutes later, becoming
only the second man after Geoff Hurst to score a hat-trick in
the World Cup final.
Messi and Mbappe both scored from the spot in the shootout
too, but the misses from Coman and Tchouameni – coupled
with a perfect four from four from Argentina – handed the
trophy to Argentina for a third time, and the first of the Messi
era as he completed the set of trophies in his legendary career.