00:00The historic performance saw Messi draw level with Germany's Miroslav Klöss
00:04at 16 total tournament goals, while becoming the oldest player to score a World Cup hat trick,
00:10exactly 20 years to the day since his first ever goal at the Global Finals.
00:16Marking his 200th international cap at Kansas City Stadium,
00:20the iconic captain became the first player in football history to compete at six different World Cups,
00:26delivering a masterclass ahead of his 39th birthday later this month.
00:31Messi opened the scoring in the 17th minute by collecting a perfectly weighted through ball from Rodrigo de Paul,
00:38driving forward to unleash a rocket from 25 yards out into the top right corner.
00:43The opening goal glanced off the fingertips of Algerian goalkeeper Luca Zidane,
00:48son of France's great Zinedine Zidane, who was watching the high-stakes match from the crowd.
00:53The defending champions had an early scare inside the opening five minutes,
00:58when Messi had a goal chalked off for offside,
01:01followed just minutes later by Algeria's Fares Chaiby,
01:05seeing his own opening effort ruled out for the same reason.
01:09Messi struck his second goal of the evening in the 60-minute,
01:12capitalizing on an error after Luca Zidane badly fumbled a low 25-yard drive from Alexis McAllister,
01:19leaving the ball to drop invitingly for a simple finish.
01:22The majestic hat-trick was completed in the 76th minute,
01:26when Messi found the back of the net with another blistering strike,
01:30courtesy of an accurate assist from substitute Nico Gonzalez.
01:35Today it became clear that Leo is the most important player of all,
01:39teammate Alexis McAllister stated after the game,
01:42dismissing prior doubts regarding the team's reliance on their veteran talisman.
01:47Algerian defender Aissa Mandi praised the forward's efficiency,
01:51calling him perhaps the best player of all time,
01:54and noting that he simply does not forgive errors on the pitch,
01:58despite an earlier first-half incident where Messi stepped on Mandi's calf without receiving a sanction.
02:04Argentina are aiming to become the first men's team to retain the trophy since Brazil in 1962,
02:09sweeping aside pre-tournament doubts regarding their credentials
02:14and their lack of recent European opposition prior to a 3-0 friendly win over Iceland last week.
02:21The vital opening victory helps the holders avoid previous tournament slip-ups,
02:26recalling their shock opening defeat to Saudi Arabia in 2022
02:30and a frustrating draw with Iceland four years prior to that.
02:35Group J action will resume on Monday,
02:38with Argentina scheduled to face Austria in Arlington, Texas,
02:42while Algeria will travel to face tournament debutantes Jordan in Santa Clara, California.
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