Lionel Messi misses penalty, remains tied with Klose at 16

Lionel Messi failed to convert a penalty early in Argentina's World Cup group match against Austria, missing the chance to become the sole top scorer in tournament history. The miss left him level with Miroslav Klose at 16 goals, while also marking his third missed World Cup spot‑kick.

The referee awarded the spot‑kick after a VAR review, setting up a potential record‑breaking moment for Messi. Social media users expressed surprise at the miss, while others highlighted his historically modest conversion rate from the penalty spot.

The miss became Messi's third failed penalty in World Cup history, the most by any player. It also raised his total to seven World Cup spot‑kicks taken, the highest tally for any competitor.

His earlier World Cup misses occurred in group‑stage games, with Iceland's Hannes Halldórsson saving the 2018 attempt. In 2022, Poland's Wojciech Szczesny was the goalkeeper who denied Messi.

Argentina's previous wide miss in a World Cup penalty dates back to 1990. That spot‑kick was taken by Diego Armando Maradona.

The article was translated into English by artificial intelligence. The original version is available in Portuguese, indicated by the Brazilian flag.