Last Updated on 12/20/2022 by てんしょく飯
The final of the World Cup Soccer Tournament in Qatar was held in Lusail, Qatar, on December 18, and Argentina beat France in a penalty shootout (4-2) after extra time with the teams tied 3-3, winning the tournament for the third time in 36 years.
Messi and Mbappe battle for the title, and the two teams face off in a “battle of two different dimensions” in terms of income.
Lionel Messi (35) of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), who will be playing in his last World Cup, scored twice and was finally crowned champion at his fifth attempt. He scored a hat trick and won a fierce ace duel with France’s Kylian Mbappe, 23, the top scorer with eight goals in the tournament.
Messi finally raised the trophy high in the center of the pitch. The match was a deadly clash between two teams boasting strong offensive capabilities.
Argentina took the advantage from the start. Messi scored the first goal in the 23rd minute with a cool penalty kick after Di Maria was brought down on the left side of the area. In the 36th minute, Di Maria added another goal after a one-touch exchange with Messi.
France, who had been on the offensive, responded with a penalty kick by Mbappe in the 35th minute of the second half, and then equalized in the 36th minute with a powerful right-footed volley from a one-two exchange on the left side of the area.
In extra time, Messi screwed in a spill four minutes into the second half, and in the 13th minute of the same period, Mbappe completed his hat trick with a penalty kick to tie the game again.
The match could not be decided after 120 minutes and went to a penalty shootout. Both Mbappe and Messi were successful as the first kickers. Argentina scored four in a row to beat France, who missed their second and third. Argentina won the world championship for the third time in nine tournaments, the first time since 1986 with Diego Maradona. By beating France, the defending champions, Messi captured the only title he had not yet won.
I finally got it,” Messi said. I couldn’t have wished for anything more. We are the champions. Messi smiled with relief. He had scored seven goals in the tournament and was named MVP, the Golden Ball Award.
Mbappe sat down on the spot and covered his face, but his overwhelming speed had made him a prolific scorer. He won the “Golden Boot Award,” given to the top scorer. The tournament heralded the arrival of the Mbappe era.
The matchup between the two aces had attracted much attention even before the game, and it lived up to the hype. Both belong to PSG. According to the Forbes (electronic edition) ranking of the world’s top soccer players, Mbappe is No. 1 with $128 million, $110 million of which comes from annual club salaries and bonuses, and the remaining $18 million from personal sponsorships. Messi is in second place with $120 million.
According to foreign media reports, Mbappe signed a three-year contract with PSG this year, with a total value of 630 million euros (about ¥92.3 billion), including contract payments. Messi’s contract expires in June 2011, but he has an option for a one-year extension, and some media reports say he has already been offered a contract extension.
PSG’s owner company is Qatar Sports Investment, which is effectively owned by the Qatari government. Japan was also working on a bid for this year’s tournament, but Qatar, backed by oil money, succeeded in its bid, turning the tables on the other candidates.
Qatar was eliminated early in the first round of the tournament, and the investment in hosting the tournament, which was estimated to cost over $300 billion, was discussed, but the final between Messi and Mbappe was realized. The country’s royalty must have been pleased with the turnout.
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