Argentina fans celebrated after Montiel's winning kick. It was :55. Argentina are World Cup winners for the third time, with Lionel Messi inspiring the team to glory, after a penalty shoot out win at the end of an incredible final against France. The World Cup is news and features. Kylian Mbappe became only the second player to score a World Cup final hat trick, but despite his goals helping France to a 3-3 result after extra time, penalty misses by Kingsley Coman and Aurelien Tchouameni meant Argentina celebrated. Player ratings, best and worst performers, highlights and notable moments, post match quotes, and key statistics are included in the jump. Lionel Messi is done with his career. Argentina's captain added a World Cup winners' medal to all of the tournaments he won with the Albiceleste in the past. He did it in a stylish way. Two goals in a dramatic final, plus a successful penalty in the shoot out, mean that Messi did everything he could to deliver for Argentina. The Golden Ball award was won by him. Is the GOAT debate over? It's probably not. You can bet that Messi won't care about the debate over who really is since he has a World Cup win. Nobody can point to a trophy missing from Messi's career. He lifted it and inspired Argentina to success like Maradona did in Mexico. Messi has been playing in the tournament. He has scored in every game since the group stage win against Poland, and he has risen to the occasion when Argentina needs him the most. In the final against France, he set Argentina on the way to victory by scoring a first-half penalty. The tournament has been great for Messi. It's the perfect way to enhance your career. Kylian Mbappe has already won a World Cup for France, and he nearly won a second against Argentina. His two goals in the space of 97 seconds in the final 10 minutes of the game gave France a lifeline after they had trailed 2-0 since the first half, and the Paris Saint-Germain star then added a third to claim his hat trick France was unable to become the first team to win back-to-back World Cup since 1962, despite the heroics of Kylian Mbappe. With the France squad being hit by a virus in the build up to the game, it was a remarkable achievement for them to come back from two goals down to win the game on penalties. Raphael Varane, Ibrahima Konate and Dayot Upamecano started the game because they couldn't train. The lack of energy was obvious for most of the game. They were so bad in the first half that they were so bad in the second half that they were even worse. One of the players of the tournament failed to see out the game and was replaced by DesChamps in the 20th minute. When the big players show up and make the difference, France's top stars go missing. Even though he almost carried his team to glory, he couldn't take France all the way. He scored a hat trick in a World Cup final, but still lost. Argentina won the World Cup for the first time in 20 years. The last time a South American team lifted the trophy was in 2002 when Brazil did it. Italy, Spain, Germany, France and Spain have all won the World Cup since a South American nation, Argentina, did it in 2002. The fact that so many of the game's leading players are from South America is a huge boost for the region. The impact made by Argentina on and off the field should help the South American challenge to host the World Cup in eight years. South American fans make up the largest group of people in the country. It is a hugely passionate football region, and the prospect of Argentina and Uruguay co-hosting the World Cup in 2030, 100 years after the former beat the latter 4-2 in the inaugural final, can only have been aided by Messi's team winning this tournament. Lionel Messi and Angel Di Maria both scored 8. Subs: Marcos Acuna, Leonardo Paredes, Lautaro Martinez, German Pezzella, and Paolo Dybala. France has Hugo Lloris, Jules Kounde, Raphael Varane, Dayot Upamecano, Aurelien Tchouameni, and Ousmane Dembele. Youssouf Fofana, Ibrahima Konate, and Axel Disasi are on the subs. KylianMbappe was the best. He was quiet for most of the game. The World Cup final was turned on it's head by Kylian Mbappe, who scored twice in 90 seconds in the closing stages and then added a hat trick with a penalty. The worst was Ousmane Dembele. A clumsy challenge on Di Maria led to Argentina's first goal. It was worse than Jules Kounde on France's right flank. The France coach saw enough after his team went down 2-0. He made a substitution with four minutes to go in the first half. The others were hauled off, and the one who didn't like it was Dembele. A post shared by ESPN FC (@espnfc) The match was forced into extra time after Kylian Mbappe scored his second goal. MBAPPE ARE YOU SERIOUS?! 😱 FRANCE TIES IT pic.twitter.com/qZLzNz3aowRapid reaction
1. Messi crowns incredible career with World Cup win
2. Mbappe's brilliance was not enough for France
3. Argentina's triumph a win for a whole continent
Player ratings (1 = worst, 10 = best)
Best and worst performers
Highlights and notable moments
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Messi and Mbappe both scored in extra time, but it was Montiel who stole the show by scoring the winning penalty.
ARGENTINA WINS THE 2022 FIFA WORLD CUP 🇦🇷
THE GREATEST MEN'S FIFA WORLD CUP FINAL OF ALL TIME pic.twitter.com/xp1N6DkLjA
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) December 18, 2022
There will be post match quotes here.
Messi had never scored or assisted in a final in his senior Argentina career. He was the sixth man to take a penalty in a World Cup final. Italy won the match against West Germany in 1982.
Twelve teams have gone on to win the World Cup after scoring the first goal. In the World Cup final, only one team has been behind by two or more goals and gone on to win the title.
All three of Argentina's goals were scored by players over the age of 30. The only players of that age to score in a World Cup final was Nils Liedholm for Sweden in 1958. Lionel is the second-oldest man to score in a World Cup final at 35 years and 178 days.
France became the first team to make multiple first-half substitution in a World Cup final. In the World Cup finals, there were only two first-half replacements, one each by Brazil and Italy.
Only two men have scored in back-to-back World Cup finals, after Brazil's Vava in 1959 and 1962. It was the first time in 14 years that a World Cup player scored eight goals.
It was the first time in a men's World Cup final that goals had been scored in successive minutes.
Only two of the previous seven men's World Cup finals have gone to penalties. It was the fourth World Cup final in the 21st century that required an additional 30 minutes.
Each of the last 11 World Cup finals has seen a player from Inter Milan and a player from the other side of the world. Dayot Upamecano started the game for France.
After scoring a hat trick in the World Cup final, Kylian Mbappe became the first player to win the Golden Boot with eight goals in a single tournament.
The World Cup has the most goals in history with 172. In 1998 and the following year, there were scores.
Messi has won more than once. He didn't win the Coupe de France, the only competition he's played in and not won.
The new world champion gets to party and celebrate with no upcoming matches on their schedule for the next two years. Most of them will be back in action for their clubs when the premier league starts in December. The second half of the LaLiga and Ligue 1 seasons will start before the end of the year, meaning we could see Messi and Mbappe back together at Paris Saint-Germain sooner than later.
France doesn't have a long time before they have to start qualification for Euro 2024. The road to Germany begins when the Netherlands visit France on March 24 followed by the Republic of Ireland on March 26.
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