1,000 not out - Messi to play his 1000th match as Argentina's playing XI against Australia announced
Some 18 years and 48 days on from that first appearance come match number 1,000 for club and country – and what a truly huge occasion it is for Messi and Argentina, who recovered from a slow start in the group phase to advance.
Lionel Messi will walk out the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium tunnel on Saturday with the expectations of millions on his shoulders when Argentina face Australia in the last 16 of Qatar 2022.
That is nothing new, of course, for this will be the 1,000th match of a remarkable career that may yet to have peaked – though that will depend on whether Messi can inspire his country past Australia and all the way to World Cup glory.
Some 18 years and 48 days on from that first appearance come match number 1,000 for club and country – and what a truly huge occasion it is for Messi and Argentina, who recovered from a slow start in the group phase to advance.
Messi has featured in 22 previous World Cup matches – one more than Diego Maradona as the most ever for an Argentina player – scoring eight times and assisting six more.
Incredibly for a player of his game-changing quality, Messi has yet to score in the knockout stages of the World Cup – 23 efforts, zero goals. Interestingly, the same is also true of archenemy Cristiano Ronaldo (25 shots without a goal).
The aim for Messi will be to put that right against Australia on what will be his 169th senior cap, 17 years on from his senior international bow against Hungary, which came just 10 games into his career for club and country.
And while it will be a special occasion for Messi, the man many consider to be the greatest of all time will hope to make it to 1,003 matches before Argentina's Qatar campaign concludes.
Should that be the case and Argentina go on to lift the World Cup for the first time since 1986, a centre-stage Messi will have the defining moment of a truly special career that still has some way to go yet.
Lautaro Martinez misses out to Manchester City's Julian Alvarez, while Enzo Fernandez has been handed a start. Alexis Mac Allister keeps his place after scoring against Poland.
For Australia, there are currently no fresh injury concerns. Right-back Nathaniel Atkinson is still hoping to be fit, but Milos Degenek impressed against Denmark so keeps his place.
Argentina XI: E. Martinez; Molina, Romero, Otamendi, Acuna; De Paul, Fernandez, Mac Allister; Gomez, Messi, Alvarez.
Australia XI: Ryan; Degenek, Rowles, Souttar, Behich; Mooy, Irvine, McGree, Baccus; Duke, Leckie.