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Messi’s opener in WC final had wife Antonela beaming with joy from the stands

  /  autty

Lionel Messi's opener for Argentina in the World Cup final against France had wife Antonela Roccuzzo beaming with joy from the stands.

The 35-year-old broke the deadlock at the Lusail Stadium in the 23rd minute from the penalty spot.

Angel Di Maria was judged to have been fouled by Ousmane Dembele, with Messi making no mistake from 12 yards out.

He sent Hugo Lloris the wrong way as he slotted home his spot-kick into the bottom right corner.

And his partner Antonela was spotted in euphoric fashion as she celebrated his goal with friends and family.

Antonela has been a constant source of support for Messi in Qatar, with their three children all out in the Gulf nation to cheer on their Paris Saint-Germain forward dad.

Following the semi-final win over Croatia, Antonella was left lost for words as she lauded her beau on social media.

And in what will be his last World Cup match, Messi put on a show in the first half against France.

His goal saw him create World Cup history as he has become the first man to score in every round from the group stage to the final.

He has also played more games at the World Cup [26] than any other footballer.

The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner has also leapfrogged Italian hero Paolo Maldini to become the player with the most World Cup minutes.

And in another incredible stat, no player has been involved in more goals [20] than Messi since the 1966 World Cup.

The Barcelona legend has chipped in with 12 goals and eight assists since making his tournament debut in 2006.

Things got even better for Argentina in the 36th minute when Di Maria doubled their tally.

Messi started off the move after playing in Julian Alvarez with a deft flick, with the Manchester City striker then finding Alexis Mac Allister.

The Brighton star then picked out the run of Di Maria, who swept the ball home into the bottom right corner with a first time finish.