OREANDA-NEWS  Argentina's national football team defeated Austria 2-0 in the second round of the World Cup group stage.

The game was held in Arlington, USA.

Lionel Messi scored both goals, scoring in the 38th and 90+5 minutes. In addition, the Argentine missed a penalty in the 9th minute.

Messi brought the number of goals at the World Championships to 18 and took the first place in the history of the tournament according to this indicator. The previous record was held by German Miroslav Klose (16).

Messi has already scored 5 goals at this World Cup. Earlier, he scored a hat-trick against Algeria (3-0).

The national team of Argentina scored 6 points and leads in Group G, the team secured a place in the playoffs. Austria has 3 points, the team is on the second line. Jordan and Algeria have not scored points yet, they have a full-time match of the second round ahead of them.

The 2026 World Cup is taking place in the USA, Canada and Mexico.