Lionel Messi Adding yet another milestone to his extraordinary achievements fifa world cup On Saturday, he became the first player in history to dish out 10 assists in a tournament since records began in 1966. The Argentina captain scored a landmark goal in the quarter-final against Switzerland at Arrowhead Stadium, creating a pinpoint corner kick that Alexis Mac Allister headed into the net in the 10th minute.
Most career assists in a World Cup (since 1966)
| rank | player | nation | Assist |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lionel Messi | Argentina | 10 |
| 2 | Diego Maradona | Argentina | 8 |
| =3 | Pierre Litbarski | Germany | 7 |
| =3 | Grzegorz Lato | Poland | 7 |
The goal gave Argentina a 1-0 lead and became the defending champion’s earliest goal at the 2026 World Cup. This is also the first time that Switzerland has fallen behind in this World Cup, having conceded just three goals in the previous five games. Messi’s latest assist further cements his status as one of the greatest playmakers in World Cup history. He now tops the all-time assists list with 10 assists, two ahead of Argentinian legend Diego Maradona. The 39-year-old continued to excel on football’s biggest stage, combining goals and assists to help Argentina win a historic fourth World Cup. The defending champions are aiming to become the first country to defend the World Cup trophy since Brazil in 1962. In the round of 16, Argentina defeated Cape Verde in overtime to advance to the quarter-finals, and then made a dramatic comeback from 2-0 down, scoring three goals in 11 minutes to defeat Egypt. Victory over Switzerland would send Lionel Scaloni’s side into the semi-finals against England, who beat Norway 2-1 earlier on Saturday. The Final Four is scheduled for Wednesday in Atlanta.
