Lionel Messi is scripting World Cup history, becoming the first player to ever…

NEW DELHI: Lionel Messi added another remarkable milestone in his storied career after scoring against Austria to become the all-time top scorer in FIFA World Cup history and extend his streak of scoring in consecutive World Cup matches.The Argentina captain found the net during the defending champions’ Group J clash in Dallas, taking his tally to 17 World Cup goals and surpassing Germany great Miroslav Klose. The strike also saw the 38-year-old equal the record jointly held by France’s Just Fontaine and Brazil’s Jairzinho for scoring in six consecutive World Cup matches. Messi entered the competition in sensational form after scoring the first World Cup hat-trick of his career against Algeria to make his 200th appearance for Argentina. His last goal, which came after a penalty miss fairly early in the game, further cemented his place among football’s all-time greats. Interestingly, French star Kylian Mbappe recently dismissed comparisons with Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, insisting that he doesn’t mind debates about size.“Messi is the best player, along with Cristiano, that’s clear. I’m trying to help my team win another World Cup. The rest is just a debate for journalists. At the moment I’m not thinking about Haaland; maybe he’s thinking about us, but I’m thinking about Iraq,” Mbappe said, as quoted by Marca according to Goal.com.The France captain also said individual records meant little compared to trophies won.“Messi showed what we saw, that’s a debate for people, it’s good, but it’s not something I have in mind. I want to bring the trophy home. I won’t be here when I’m 40; I was fired before. I don’t make plans for the future, I only think about the present moment, how to enjoy the World Cup,” he added.“It’s always a pleasure to be there and the match is important because we have to qualify. I already knew Leo would score because he always scores. I’m behind him, but when you score you get closer, but the most important thing for me is to win the World Cup,” he said.