Ammon News - An emotional Lionel Messi was wiping his tears with his shirt after scoring Argentina's ​first goal against Algeria in the World Cup, a ‌strike that marked the beginning of a memorable performance where he scored a hat-trick in a 3-0 win.

But while his first ​World Cup treble had many Argentina fans in tears of joy, ​Messi said he was crying for a personal ⁠reason not connected with the sport.

"Why did I ​cry? It was something completely unrelated to football. ​I went through some difficult days," said Messi, who is playing in a record sixth World Cup, after Tuesday's match.

"But ​I'm grateful to the entire delegation and my ​teammates because they were always by my side, giving me ‌a ⁠lot of strength to help me get through it."

A source close to Messi's family told Reuters his father was dealing with health issues.

Local media ​reported that ​his father ⁠was in hospital in Argentina and that the situation had worried the ​player in recent weeks.
Messi, who turns ​39 next ⁠week, has equalled Miroslav Klose's record of scoring 16 goals at World Cup tournaments.

Argentina will continue their title ⁠defence ​with a Group J game ​against Austria on Monday.


Reuters