Lionel Messi became, on Saturday, 11 July, the first player with ten assists in World Cup history since the statistic was officially recorded, from 1966. The 39-year-old captain recorded the milestone in the quarter-final against Switzerland at the Arrowhead Stadium.
Messi, in the 10th minute, delivered a corner from which Alexis Mac Allister headed in to take the lead 1-0. It was the earliest goal for the current world champions at this tournament, and Switzerland found themselves in deficit for the first time: in the previous five matches, they had conceded only three goals.
On the all-time list of assists, Messi remains at the top, ahead of his compatriot Diego Maradona, who has accumulated eight assists in World Cups. The third place, with seven each, is shared by German Pierre Littbarski and Polish Grzegorz Lato.
Argentina, with a victory, continues its quest for the fourth title and the attempt to become the first team to defend its title since Brazil in 1962. The path to the semi-finals was not smooth: in the round of 16, they beat Cape Verde only after extra time, and earlier they overturned 0-2 against Egypt with three goals in just 11 minutes.
In the semi-finals, the team of Lionel Scaloni faces England, which on Saturday defeated Norway 2-1. The match for a place in the final takes place on Wednesday in Atlanta.
