The World Cup scorer race was once again in the dark. Julian Alvarez broke into the ‘scorer’s three-way match’ of Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Olivier Giroud.
Argentina won 3-0 against Croatia in the quarterfinals of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar held at the Lusail Iconic Stadium in Lusail, Qatar at 4:00 am (Korean time) on the 14th. Argentina continued its record of being undefeated in the semi-finals of the World Cup and reached the final again after 8 years.
It was a de facto ‘coronation ceremony’. Messi once again became the best player of the match with one goal and one assist. In the 32nd minute of the first half, Julian Alvarez successfully scored a penalty kick in the process of breaking through, giving Argentina the lead. In the 24th minute of the second half, Messi perfectly beat Yosco Gbardiol, ‘the best center back in this tournament’, from the right flank, and Alvarez rushed in. He handed an accurate pass to , completing a great victory for Argentina.
It also ignited the competition for the top scorer. Messi scored the fifth goal of the tournament on this day and became a joint leader in the top scorer with Mbappe. As France has two games left, it is still more advantageous for Mbappe, but Messi has made a cornerstone to finish his ‘Last Dance’ more perfectly.
Messi is not the only one who lit the race for the top scorer. Alvarez also joined in. Alvarez scored two goals on the day and tied for third place with Giroud with four points in the tournament. The first goal was a ‘solo play’ that broke down the defense one after another with a dribble that started near the half-line, and the second goal was made by calmly finishing Messi’s beautiful assist. 메이저놀이터
He also wrote a new record. Álvarez became the youngest player since Pele at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden to score multiple goals after a semi-final. Unfortunately, at the age of 22 years and 316 days, he cannot win the World Cup Young Player award, but his young player’s performance is a big help in Argentina’s journey to victory.
Now it’s the ‘four-way battle’. Even Alvarez intruded into the top scorer composition, which was expected to be occupied by one of Mbappe, Messi, and Giroud. There is still a high possibility that the top scorer will emerge from Mbappe and Messi, but as Alvarez gained momentum with a multi-goal in the quarterfinals, there is a chance that he will squeeze in between them and rise to the top spot.