A clinical hat-trick from Lionel Messi powered Argentina to a commanding 3–0 victory over Algeria on Wednesday morning, securing a perfect start to their Group J campaign.

The contest, however, nearly began with a shock. Just eight minutes into the match, Algerian hearts soared when Ibrahim Maza threaded a clever pass to Fares Chaïbi, who calmly slotted the ball past the Argentine goalkeeper.

But the celebration was cut short; a swift VAR intervention chalked the effort off for offside, denying the North Africans a dream start and waking a sleeping giant.

Spurred by the early scare, Argentina’s midfield engine room, orchestrated by Rodrigo De Paul, Enzo Fernández, and Alexis Mac Allister, quickly seized control of possession.

Their suffocating rhythm gradually pushed Algeria deeper into their own half, forcing them to defend in compact numbers while relying on rare counterattacks.

The breakthrough arrived in the 17th minute when Messi combined beautifully with De Paul at the edge of the box, unleashing a trademark curling finish into the top right corner to break the deadlock.

From that moment, the Albiceleste dictated the tempo of the match. Algeria still showed flashes of danger, with Houssem Aouar, Fares Chaïbi, and Rayan Aït-Nouri injecting bursts of speed into their attacking play, while Ramiz Zerrouki and Nabil Bentaleb fought valiantly in midfield.

Yet, every Algerian wave crashed against an immaculate Argentine defensive structure led by a rock-solid Cristian Romero.

Seeking to sustain the attacking pressure in the second half, Lionel Scaloni introduced fresh legs in Julián Álvarez and Nicolás González. Algeria countered by throwing Riyad Mahrez, Mohamed Amoura, and Adil Boulbina into the fray, but Argentina’s stranglehold only tightened.

In the 60th minute, Mac Allister stung the palms of Algerian goalkeeper Luca Zidane with a ferocious, powerful strike. Though Zidane made a brilliant initial save, Messi reacted quickest inside the penalty area, smashing home the rebound to double the lead.

The definitive exclamation point came in the 76th minute. González turned provider, delivering a perfectly weighted pass to his captain on the edge of the area.

With characteristic elegance, Messi cut inside his marker and unleashed a powerful, low drive into the bottom corner.

The strike completed his hat-trick, sealed the 3–0 victory, and sent a resounding warning shot to the rest of the tournament.