Lionel Messi produced a masterclass performance on Tuesday, scoring a historic hat-trick as defending champions Argentina began their World Cup title defence with a commanding 3-0 victory over Algeria.

The Argentine captain lit up Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, guiding his side to a comfortable win while equalling the World Cup all-time scoring record with 16 goals.

The match marked another milestone in Messi’s remarkable career, as the 38-year-old became the first player in history to feature in six FIFA World Cups. The appearance was also his 200th for Argentina, adding further significance to an already memorable night.

Messi opened the scoring in the 17th minute with a superb curling effort, moving onto 14 World Cup goals and drawing level with German legend Gerd Muller and France star Kylian Mbappe in the tournament’s scoring charts.

The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner struck again just after the hour mark, reacting quickest to convert a rebound from an Alexis Mac Allister effort and move ahead of Muller and Mbappe to join Brazilian icon Ronaldo on 15 World Cup goals.

He completed the first World Cup hat-trick of his illustrious career in the 76th minute, calmly finishing from the edge of the penalty area to draw level with Germany’s Miroslav Klose as the tournament’s joint all-time leading scorer on 16 goals.

Messi received a standing ovation when he was substituted four minutes later, with Argentina fans celebrating yet another historic achievement from their talisman.

Despite the landmark feat, Messi remained modest after the match.

“It’s an honor to be there, given what it means to stand alongside Klose or the others — Ronaldo is there too — but I don’t think it means anything. In the end, it’s just a statistic and nothing more,” he said.