After suggesting the end of his international football career is nearing, Argentina legend Lionel Messi is playing his last World Cup and possibly the last major international tournament of his illustrious career.
The Paris Saint-Germain superstar is sure to go down as one of the greatest players in the game’s history, but a first World Cup title could cement his place as the all-time No.1.
Here, The Sporting News keeps track of all the data that matters most during Messi’s time at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Lionel Messi World Cup Stats 2022
After performing at an incredibly high level for club side PSG this season, Messi has entered the 2022 World Cup in fine form.
Updated after round of 16 results
| Rank amongst 2022 World Cup players | Stat | Total |
| *2 | Goals | 3 |
| 1 | Expected goals (xG) | 2.79 |
| *17 | Assists | 1 |
| *16 | Expected assists (xA) | 0.82 |
| 2 | Shots | 19 |
| *1 | Shots on target | 10 |
| *57 | Shot conversion rate | 15.8% |
| 2 | Chances created | 13 |
| *5 | Dribbles completed | 9 |
| *121 | Dribble success rate | 42.9% |
| 3 | Touches in opposition box | 30 |
| *31 | Successful passes | 179 |
| 10 | Passes played into the box | 26 |
| 5 | Total carries | 104 |
| 6 | Progressive carries | 57 |
| *17 | Duels won | 24 |
* combined in statistics.
How many goals did Messi contribute to the previous World Cup?
At the 2022 World Cup, Lionel Messi is set to join just a handful of footballers who have played in five different editions of the competition.
To date, he has played 19 times in four World Cups, with his best finish coming in 2014. At the same time, Argentina reached the final, where they lost 1–0 in extra time to Germany.
In total, the former Barcelona player scored six goals in those four tournaments, although he failed to score in the knockout stages of the competition.
Perhaps his best goal came against Nigeria in the 2018 tournament where he dominated possession in that crucial do-or-die game.
Along with his six goals, he has also managed to record five assists in previous World Cups.
Lionel Messi’s World Cup History
| Total Games played | 23 |
| Total Goals | 9 |
| Assists | 6 |
| His Win rate | 69.5% |
| Knockout matches he won | 6 |