On the first day of the 2026 World Cup Group J competition, Argentina crushed Algeria with a hat-trick from Lionel Messi, and Austria also beat Jordan 3-1, making it a historic day for the Argentine captain and the first bitter experience for the two newcomers from Asia.
Publish dateWednesday 17 June 2026 - 15:21
Story Code : 358199
Afghan Voice Agency (AVA): the seventh day of the 2026 World Cup competition was followed by two matches from Group J. In the first match, the national football teams of Argentina and Algeria faced each other at 05:30 Kabul time at the Kansas City Stadium, which Argentina won 3-0.
Argentina 3 – Algeria 0; Messi's historic night
The defending champions started the game on the offensive and in the 5th minute Messi scored but was ruled offside. Three minutes later, the same thing happened for Algeria and their goal was also disallowed.
In the 17th minute, De Paul played a long pass to Messi behind the Algerian penalty area and the Albiceleste captain opened the scoring with a powerful shot past Luca Zidane.
Scaloni's men continued their attacks in the second half. In the 60th minute, McAllister shot from behind the penalty area, but the Algerian goalkeeper's incomplete clearance put the rebound in front of Messi, who scored the second goal with a simple side-foot.
But that was not the end of it. Lionel Messi scored his 16th goal in World Cup history in the 76th minute to set another record with a hat-trick in the first match. With these three goals, he became the joint top scorer in World Cup history with Miroslav Klose with 16 goals.
Austria 3 – Jordan 1; Second defeat for Asians
In the second match of this group, the national football teams of Austria and Jordan faced each other at 08:30 this morning (Wednesday, 17th June) Afghanistan time at Levi's Stadium in San Francisco, USA, which ended with a score of 3-1 in favor of Austria.
Austria took the lead in the 21st minute with a beautiful shot by Romano Schmid and went to the dressing room with a win in the first half. In the 50th minute, Ali Alwan equalized for Jordan with a shot from inside the penalty area, but in the 76th minute, Jordan defender Yazan Al-Arab gave Austria the lead again with an own goal. In the 12th minute + 90th minute, Arnautovic's penalty made the score 3-1.
Austria also scored in the 72nd minute, but the referee disallowed it with the help of VAR due to a player from their team handling the ball.
Defeat of the spell and a bitter day for Asians
With today's results, Jordan and Algeria, as two new representatives to the World Cup, experienced their first defeats. Jordan was the second Asian team to admit defeat in this period; previously, Iraq lost 4-1 to Norway.
With this win, Austria gained 3 points and, due to a smaller goal difference than Argentina, came in second place in Group J. The referee of Argentina's match was Szymon Marciniak of Poland.
Lionel Messi increased his number of goals in World Cups to 16 with a hat-trick against Algeria, and he shared the top scorer list in the history of the competition with Miroslav Klose (16 goals). He is also the oldest player to score a hat-trick in World Cup history.
According to experts, Argentina, with a powerful performance and Messi's hat-trick, sent a clear message to all the championship rivals that they are still hungry to repeat the championship. Observers say that the coordination of Argentina's attack and Messi's excellent form have made this team one of the most serious contenders for the championship.
On the other hand, Austria, with its victory over Jordan, showed that it deserves to be in the higher stages and could cause trouble for Algeria and even Argentina. For the two Asian teams (Jordan and Iraq), these defeats could be a bitter but valuable experience in their first appearance at the World Cup.
Argentina 3 – Algeria 0; Messi's historic night
The defending champions started the game on the offensive and in the 5th minute Messi scored but was ruled offside. Three minutes later, the same thing happened for Algeria and their goal was also disallowed.
In the 17th minute, De Paul played a long pass to Messi behind the Algerian penalty area and the Albiceleste captain opened the scoring with a powerful shot past Luca Zidane.
Scaloni's men continued their attacks in the second half. In the 60th minute, McAllister shot from behind the penalty area, but the Algerian goalkeeper's incomplete clearance put the rebound in front of Messi, who scored the second goal with a simple side-foot.
But that was not the end of it. Lionel Messi scored his 16th goal in World Cup history in the 76th minute to set another record with a hat-trick in the first match. With these three goals, he became the joint top scorer in World Cup history with Miroslav Klose with 16 goals.
Austria 3 – Jordan 1; Second defeat for Asians
In the second match of this group, the national football teams of Austria and Jordan faced each other at 08:30 this morning (Wednesday, 17th June) Afghanistan time at Levi's Stadium in San Francisco, USA, which ended with a score of 3-1 in favor of Austria.
Austria took the lead in the 21st minute with a beautiful shot by Romano Schmid and went to the dressing room with a win in the first half. In the 50th minute, Ali Alwan equalized for Jordan with a shot from inside the penalty area, but in the 76th minute, Jordan defender Yazan Al-Arab gave Austria the lead again with an own goal. In the 12th minute + 90th minute, Arnautovic's penalty made the score 3-1.
Austria also scored in the 72nd minute, but the referee disallowed it with the help of VAR due to a player from their team handling the ball.
Defeat of the spell and a bitter day for Asians
With today's results, Jordan and Algeria, as two new representatives to the World Cup, experienced their first defeats. Jordan was the second Asian team to admit defeat in this period; previously, Iraq lost 4-1 to Norway.
With this win, Austria gained 3 points and, due to a smaller goal difference than Argentina, came in second place in Group J. The referee of Argentina's match was Szymon Marciniak of Poland.
Lionel Messi increased his number of goals in World Cups to 16 with a hat-trick against Algeria, and he shared the top scorer list in the history of the competition with Miroslav Klose (16 goals). He is also the oldest player to score a hat-trick in World Cup history.
According to experts, Argentina, with a powerful performance and Messi's hat-trick, sent a clear message to all the championship rivals that they are still hungry to repeat the championship. Observers say that the coordination of Argentina's attack and Messi's excellent form have made this team one of the most serious contenders for the championship.
On the other hand, Austria, with its victory over Jordan, showed that it deserves to be in the higher stages and could cause trouble for Algeria and even Argentina. For the two Asian teams (Jordan and Iraq), these defeats could be a bitter but valuable experience in their first appearance at the World Cup.
avapress.net/vdceov8xojh8nzi.1kbj.html
Top hits
