The anticipation builds as Argentina faces Spain in the final of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Argentina secured their place by overcoming England 2-1 in the semi-finals, driven by a stellar display from Lionel Messi. On the other side, Spain advanced with a convincing 2-0 victory against France. As the reigning champions, Argentina aims to join Brazil and Italy as the only teams to successfully defend their title and win consecutive World Cups. For Spain, Rodri is a pivotal player in their strategy, leading the tournament in passes completed with a remarkable total of 648, surpassing his previous record of 638 set in 2022.
Event Context
In related news, Ronaldo Nazario believes Argentina lacks the strength necessary to mount a comeback in the World Cup final, confidently predicting a straightforward victory for Spain.
During this World Cup, Argentina has achieved victories in all seven of their matches, matching Brazil’s record from 2002 for the most wins in a single tournament. Under the guidance of Lionel Scaloni, the team has the opportunity to become the fifth squad to claim the trophy with a perfect win rate, joining the ranks of Uruguay in 1930, Italy in 1938, and Brazil in 1970 and 2002.
Player Focus
Leandro Paredes stands out as the sole Argentine player featured in this ranking, holding fifth place with 496 completed passes. He is preceded by Pau Cubarsi (547 passes), Aymeric Laporte (533), and Marc Guehi (514), who occupy the second, third, and fourth positions, respectively. Spain, meanwhile, boasts an impressive unbeaten streak of 37 matches, matching the record for men’s international football, with their last defeat occurring against Colombia (1-0) in March 2024. Since that loss, Spain has secured 27 victories and recorded 10 draws.
In terms of individual performance, Lamine Yamal leads the tournament in dribbles completed, with a total of 30. He is trailed by Kylian Mbappe (24), Vinicius Junior (23), Lionel Messi (22), and Jeremy Doku (21).
Argentina has achieved a remarkable feat by scoring at least two goals in 13 consecutive matches, setting a new World Cup record. They have also found the net five times from outside the penalty area, tying for the highest total by any team in World Cup history. Messi contributed two of those goals, while Giovani Lo Celso, Enzo Fernandez, and Julian Alvarez each scored one.
Messi has also provided four assists in the current campaign, just one behind Michael Olise of France. At 39 years old, he has extended his record of assisting in the most World Cup editions to six.
Facing Messi, Spanish goalkeeper Unai Simon will aim for yet another clean sheet. He has achieved six clean sheets in seven matches this tournament, the highest tally in a single edition. Several goalkeepers have recorded five clean sheets each in past tournaments, including Jan Jongbloed (1974), Walter Zenga (1990), Claudio Taffarel (1994), Fabien Barthez (1998), Oliver Kahn (2002), Gianluigi Buffon (2006), and Iker Casillas (2010).
