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Is anyone surprised? Argentina started their World Cup campaign with Lionel Messi centre of attention. Business as usual.
It was the no.10’s show in La Albiceleste’s first Group J game, plundering three goals in under 80 minutes against Austria.
Can he repeat the trick? You wouldn’t bet against it.
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Argentina vs Austria prediction
Messi and co are back in action at the AT&T Stadium on Monday 22 June, with kick-off scheduled for 6pm BST.
Argentina could secure top spot in the group with a win, with one game left to play.
INCREDIBLE 🔥Lionel Messi strikes from distance and completes his hat-trick! pic.twitter.com/ZtSoFhPbS5June 17, 2026
Austria and Algeria occupy very similar places in the FIFA rankings and in the football food chain, with hints of talent from top European sides, but nothing to blow the mind.
Algeria simply couldn’t live with Messi, and what makes him even more difficult to deal with is the players around him make him difficult to double up on.
Focus too much attention on the Inter Miami man, and you’re simply gifting more space to the likes of Lautaro Martinez – a sometimes underrated attacking force next to the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner – and Julian Alvarez, or a talent like Enzo Fernandez in midfield.
Even if Austria manage to spring a counter, they meet a Premier League-standard defence in Cristian Romero and Lisandro Martinez, plus multiple Yashin Award winner Emi Martinez.
In short, this looks like a tough one for Austria, but many of their best players – David Alaba and Konrad Laimer, to name two – operate primarily in defence by trade, so we don't expect quite the same rollover as Algeria.
Argentina aren’t immune to a shock – famously, after losing to Saudi Arabia in Qatar in 2022 – we just can’t see this being one of those days.
Another Messi hat-trick feels unlikely, but we expect him to influence heavily.
Score prediction: Argentina 2-0 Austria
