Lionel Messi had little impact as Argentina barely approached Spain's goal in a one-sided World Cup final. The Argentina men’s national football team takes on Spain in the World Cup 2026 final on Sunday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Head coach Lionel Scaloni will make changes from the team that beat England 2-1 on Wednesday.
The starting lineup will feature Emiliano Dibu Martínez at the goal but will have a changed back four in front of him, with River Plate’s Gonzalo Montiel replacing Nahuel Molina. Cristian Cuti Romero, Lisandro Martínez, and Nicolás Tagliafico complete the back line. In the midfield, Rodrigo de Paul recovers his regular spot on the right, while Enzo Fernánez and Alexis Mac Allister hold the middle.
On the left, usual sub Nicolás González will start. Up top, Julian Álvarez lines up alongside star and captain Lionel Messi. The road to the final Despite a nearly flawless group stage in which it beat Algeria 3-0, Austria 2-0, and Jordan 3-1, with six goals by star and captain Lionel Messi, Argentina’s path through the knockout stages proved far more challenging.
An extra-time 3-2 win against Cape Verde in the round of 32 was followed by another 3-2 win — this time in regulation — in the round of 16 against Egypt after coming back from being down 2-0. In the quarterfinals, Argentina beat Switzerland 3-1, where the team looked overpowered for long stretches of the match. The win set up a semifinal duel against England, where the Albiceleste once again had to fight after going down 1-0.
The team ended up winning with goals by Enzo Fernández in the 85th minute and Lautaro Martínez in the 92nd, in order to secure a historic result. “When we’re against the odds, they play their best,” said head coach Lionel Scaloni after the match. “When that happens, and the rival hesitates, they smell blood and go all in.” Spain’s path One of the biggest favorites ahead of the tournament, Spain didn’t start the road to the 2026 World Cup final in the best way.
A surprising 0-0 tie against Cape Verde saw head coach Luis de la Fuente’s team unable to break the deadlock, thanks to a memorable performance by goalkeeper Vozinha. Things quickly improved with a 4-0 win against Saudi Arabia and a 1-0 victory in the last group stage game against Uruguay, thanks to a mistake by Uruguayan goalkeeper Fernando Muslera. La Roja showed its best game in a round of 32 3-0 victory over Austria at SoFi Stadium in Los…
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