Lionel Messi sets unwanted FIFA World Cup record after missing penalty against Poland

Argentina kept their dream of winning the FIFA World Cup 2022 alive after cruising past Poland in their final group-stage match. In a must-win match, Argentina beat Poland 2-0 courtesy of goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Julian Alvarez in the second half. However, the biggest talking point of the match was Lionel Messi's failure from the penalty spot.

Argentina vs Poland: Wojciech Szczesny achieves a major milestone after stopping Lionel Messi's penalty

The penalty incident happened n the 39th minute of the match when Messi won a penalty after being floored in an aerial challenge by Szczesny. The Poland goalkeeper made amends for his mistake by stopping Messi's penalty. The Argentina skipper is now the first player in the history of the FIFA World Cup to have two penalties saved. Messi has missed two of his three penalty kicks at the World Cup equalling the most by a player since at least 1966 (Asamoah Gyan, two missed out of four).
Wojciech Szczesny, on the other hand, is only the second goalkeeper to save a penalty at the World Cup after conceding it himself. Previously only two other goalkeepers have kept out two non-shootout penalties at the same World Cup before with Poland's Jan Tomaszewski doing it in 1974 and the United States Brad Friedel doing it in 2002.

Argentina vs Poland match highlights 

After a shocking defeat against Saudi Arabia and a win over Mexico, Argentina needed an inspirational performance from Lionel Messi to get through to the knockout stage. Argentina vs Poland match was billed as Messi vs Lewandowski contest but Messi failed to shine in the crucial match. The Argentina skipper ended up relieved after failing to score a penalty for the second straight World Cup. Mac Allister converted a cross from Nahuel Molina inside the first minute of the second half to break the deadlock. Julian Alvarez who started ahead of Lautaro Martinez ensured the team's victory with a curling effort into the top corner in the 67th minute. Poland joined Argentina in the round of 16 after the Saudi Arabia vs Mexico match ended in Mexico winning the match 2-1 but bowed out of the tournament due to the goal difference.