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The Argentinian star takes a painful hit
Losing the World Cup wasn’t the only painful sight for Lionel Messi on the night the curtain came down on the 2026 World Cup. Rather, a second shock came when he also missed out on the tournament’s best player award despite his exceptional numbers during the competition, so the debate returned to the criteria for choosing the winner of the World Cup’s most important individual award.
Argentina lost 1-0 to Spain in the final match, so Messi could not lead the “Tango” to retain the world title, which he won in the last match. After the final whistle, the Argentina captain looked deeply emotional before watching Spain midfielder Rodri collect the player of the tournament award.
Messi’s numbers… did he deserve the award?
Given the Argentine captain’s numbers, the question marks seem logical to many observers. Messi finished the tournament as the second highest scorer with 8 goals and 4 assists, making him the top contributor to his country’s goals in the finals.
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Messi’s achievements have not stopped in the current campaign as he also cemented his historic position in the history of the UEFA Champions League by taking his goals tally to 21, becoming the second top scorer in the history of the tournament, in addition to the record for the most goals by a player in World Cup qualifiers when he reached 10 assists.
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The Argentina star also had some exceptional individual performances throughout the tournament, most notably against England in the semi-finals when he scored two winning goals and had one of his best games for Argentina to take his country to their second consecutive final.
Rodri… the beating heart of Spain
Rodri’s selection, on the other hand, was no coincidence as the Manchester City man played a key role in Spain’s title win and was the mastermind behind the Spanish midfield throughout the tournament, thanks to his ability to control the pattern of the game, connect the lines and impose the style of possession that defines La Roja.
The final clearly epitomized Rodri’s value, after he made 101 correct passes out of 106 with 95% accuracy, directly contributing to the Spaniards’ dominance throughout the match and preventing Argentina from imposing their style.
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Rodri not only shone in the final match, but also made history by becoming the owner of the most correct passes in the history of the World Cup with 1394 passes, surpassing the number of Brazilian Dunga who reached 1306 passes.
The controversy remains between those who believe Messi deserved the crown due to his attacking impact and historic numbers, and those who believe Rodri embodied the most complete and influential player in a team that won the title without defeat.
Between the two opinions, the Player of the Year award remains one of the most debated awards after each World Cup.
