A Ferran Torres dagger and Messi tears: The 2026 FIFA World Cup final

The 2026 World Cup final was meant to be the Lionel Messi vs Lamine Yamal show, the greatest to ever play the game vs he who seeks to knock him off his mantle. Rarely in football does a story work out so perfectly that a lucky competition winner 19 years ago would meet his idol yet again, but this time in the final of the World Cup. The pregame narrative set us up for this great battle: the tricky youngster plying his trade on this world stage for the very first time vs the veteran Argentinian seeking to etch his name yet again in the history books. Yet it was neither of them who stole the show.

Yamal did show early Spanish intent as he cut in and forced a smart, yet comfortable save from Martinez. The early Spanish pressure was to be the pattern for the game as Spain controlled possession without really threatening the Argentinian goal. If there was to be one criticism of Spain’s stellar World Cup run, it was their lack of decisiveness in the final third, and it seemed to be troubling them once again. Argentina offered nothing except for a few flurries forward cut out by the Spanish backline, but the ominous presence of Messi drifting almost lazily around the pitch would have frightened even the most optimistic Spain supporters.

A senseless charge from the already booked Enzo Fernandez saw him go straight through Cubarsi and receive his second yellow

The two halves of regular time were split up by the halftime show, which extended the break to 30 minutes. The two halves of regular time were split by the halftime show, which extended the break to 30 minutes. As performances by Madonna, The Muppets, BTS, Justin Bieber, and Shakira rang out around the stadium, both locker rooms would have had plenty to reflect on after a first half that produced no clear shots on target from either team.

As the clock ticked down, the Spanish conquest continued but still failed to yield results. Images of Cape Verde, Switzerland, Egypt, and England, all slain by late Argentinian daggers, were ever present and offered that slight source of tension in an otherwise one-sided final. Yet those daggers never came, and the clock ticked over into added time. Merino missed a glorious opportunity late on, one which he would have been expected to score, especially given his form. That was not to be the defining moment of the second half, however, as late in added time, a senseless charge from the already booked Enzo Fernandez saw him go straight through Cubarsi and receive his second yellow. Argentina had a mountain to climb now.

The first half of extra time followed yet again the same pattern as the rest of the game. This time there was a decided incisiveness of Spain’s play, spurred by the red card. This newfound intensity bore fruit, and they did break the Argentina deadlock with Merino holding off Otamendi before laying it off to Williams to put into an empty net. The challenge by Merino, however, was deemed too strong and the goal was swiftly ruled out.

Ferran Torres […] volleyed it past despairing Argentinean bodies and into the roof of the net

The second half began, and quickly Nico Williams found himself round the back of the Argentinian defence, nodding it back to an onrushing Ferran Torres who volleyed it past despairing Argentine bodies and into the roof of the net. 1-0 Spain and the red half of the stadium erupted in jubilation. Around the celebrations, there were Argentine bodies picking themselves up, exhausted and broken. The Spanish pressure had finally paid off.

The goal shifted momentum as Argentina began to desperately throw bodies forward, yet Spain exploited the gaps to go 2-0 up, only for it to be ruled out for the tightest of offsides. The slight reprieve seemed to awaken Messi, who began dropping deeper, floating balls behind the Spanish backline. Messi’s work gave Argentina a flurry of late corners, but they failed to convert, with Simeone blazing a difficult half-volley well over the bar.

Nevertheless, these attempts for an equaliser were in vain, as after 120 minutes of relatively one-sided football, the referee finally blew his whistle (not without some drama right after, when a fight broke out between players from the two sides, briefly intervening in celebrations).

Messi defeated, Spain prevailed, and Rodri picked up his golden ball. The unlikely star of this World Cup.