Argentina faces a terrible history, can Messi break the record?

The current champion Argentina is going to take to the field on a difficult mission to retain the title on the world stage. Lionel Scaloni's disciples will start their World Cup campaign against Algeria in the Group 'J' match in Kansas City, USA at 7 am Bangladesh time on Tuesday (June 17). But there is a strange concern among Argentine football fans surrounding the match - will Lionel Messi be able to get out of the 'cursed' history of the first match of the World Cup?

In the world of football, 'incident' and 'Argentina' seem to complement each other whenever they enter the World Cup as champions. Statistics say that the Albiceleste have never won their first match in the tournament after winning the title. So before starting their campaign against Algeria in the 2026 World Cup, the history of Argentina's first match is once again in discussion.

The 1982 Experience: After winning their first World Cup at home in 1978, Argentina lost 1-0 to Belgium in their first match in 1982. Erwin Vandenberg's goal at Barcelona's Camp Nou gave the Argentines a big blow at the beginning.

The disappointment of 1990: After winning the title for the second time in 1986 under the magic of Diego Maradona, they stumbled again in Italy in 1990. Argentina lost 1-0 to Cameroon in the opening match of the tournament. That goal by François Omam-Biyk is still one of the best examples of accidents in history.

The 2022 Qatar Chapter: That historic 2-1 loss to Saudi Arabia in the last Qatar World Cup. However, Argentina seemed to shine from that loss. After the Saudi disaster, Lionel Messi finally won the long-awaited golden trophy.

Despite this history, coach Lionel Scaloni is reluctant to be complacent. He warned about Algeria's speedy forwards, saying, "They have some fast players in attack who can turn the game at any time. We have to respect them."

According to Scaloni, Algeria's style of play is similar to Morocco's. However, they have learned from the bitter experience of 2022 that the first match is not everything. "The team is very relaxed mentally. We want to play our natural game without any extra pressure," he said.

Argentina, who are at the top of the FIFA rankings, have retained 17 players from the Qatar World Cup-winning team in their squad. How prepared they are with this mix of experience is now a question. Will today's match in Kansas City repeat the history of the old incident, or will the world champions start their new journey with a victory? Football fans around the world are waiting for that answer.