2022 World Cup: Three Takeaways From Possibly Best Finals Game Ever Played

After nearly a month of soccer fever thanks to the World Cup, everyone was witness to one of the most drama-filled finishes in sports history in the year 2022.

With the tournament winners being decided, here are some takeaways from an all-time classic final matchup between Argentina and France.

Lionel Messi Solidifies His 'GOAT' Case

At 35 years old, Lionel Messi finally captured the one award that eluded him thus far in his illustrious career: the World Cup trophy.

Messi had been a part of Argentina's quest for the World Cup Trophy since he was 19 years old in the 2006 edition, scoring his first tournament goal in their 6-0 rout of the then-nation of Serbia and Montenegro.

While many regarded him as one of the greatest players ever to grace the pitch, Messi had always lacked success in the World Cup to cement his spot amongst iconic names like Pele, the Brazilian Ronaldo and fellow countryman Diego Maradona–who guided Argentina to their last World Cup title in 1986.

Messi came extremely close to securing the title in 2014, but a Mario Gotze goal upended him and the Argentinian national team to give Germany the win in the finals.

With 2018 World Cup winner France standing in his way, Messi was a man on a mission and kept his side in the fight with a two-goal performance before taking home the title on penalties.

Long been seen as one of the standard-bearers of his generation alongside Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi now has the leg up on his longtime on-pitch rival with a World Cup trophy under his belt.

Kylian Mbappe Poised To Be 'The Next Big Thing'

France found themselves in a 2-0 hole early against Argentina as Messi and Angel Di Maria scored one goal apiece in the 23rd and 36th minute respectively.

But the French superstar was unwilling to let their dream of becoming the third-ever team in World Cup history to go back-to-back.

Mbappe converted a penalty for France at the 80th minute and drew level with Argentina soon after that at the 81st, with a combined duration of one minute and 33 seconds between both goals.

The final went beyond the regular 90 minutes and after Messi scored the penalty at the 108th minute to give Argentina the lead, Mbappe again took the spot kick for his country and sent the game into penalties.

After scoring the first penalty for his country, his heroics would end there as Kingsley Coman and Aurelien Tchouameni both failed to convert their attempts which left the door wide open for Argentina to win it all.

Despite the loss, Mbappe earned the respect of fans around the world with his hat-trick performance and the labels of "generational soccer talent" and "heir apparent" to guys like Messi and Ronaldo have merit to it.

Soccer Lives Up To Moniker

The 2022 World Cup final played host to 120-plus minutes of dramatic back-and-forth action between Argentina and France, and the events that unfolded in between proved to sports fans why it is "the beautiful game."

Though the term was popularized by Brazil soccer star Pele in 1977, it is believed that it was coined by English commentator Stuart Hall earlier.

Both nations traded haymakers in hopes of ending the game as early as possible, but the amount of heart and skill shown by each competitor throughout the final was too good to contain in just 90 minutes.

Fans were treated to one of the most exciting World Cup final matches in recent memory as the ebb and flow of the game would seemingly swing between both sides in almost every single possession.

Argentina and France both deserve their flowers for a great game played and a matchup that fans will not forget anytime soon.