Lionel Messi, Argentina's living legend, has broken yet another record with an assist in a World Cup quarterfinal against the Netherlands.
Playing in his fifth World Cup
I'm hoping to reach the semi-finals.
Quality moment delivered
WHAT HAPPENED? The 35-year-old darted forward with characteristic intent before sliding a defence-splitting through-ball for teammate Nahuel Molina, who fired Argentina ahead against their Dutch opponents. Messi now has five assists across all of his World Cup knockout game appearances. This is more than any other player at that stage of the tournament (since 1966, when Opta began keeping records), putting him ahead of Pele, who had four.
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Messi had three goals in Qatar prior to the match. However, his penalty against the Netherlands gives him four for the tournament. This brings him up to date with Gabriel Batistuta, who previously held the record for the most in an Argentina shirt with ten.
WHAT'S NEXT FOR MESSI? He can have all the assists in the world, but they will be meaningless to Messi if he does not win the fabled World Cup.
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Barcelona agree a deal ‘in principle’ for Premier League midfielder
Barcelona has agreed to bring Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves to the Camp Nou.
Jorge Mendes, Neves' agent, has agreed to a "economically favorable" deal with Barcelona. However, whether or not the Portuguese international joins the club will be decided by head coach Xavi Hernandez.
According to Sport, the agreed-upon price is significantly lower than Wolves' initial valuation of Neves, which was around €50 million. Barcelona is eager to complete the transaction because it is financially advantageous to them.However, the transaction will not be finalized until Xavi gives his approval. According to Sport, the Barcelona manager thinks Neves is a good footballer but does not see him as a replacement for the aging Sergio Busquets. As a result, he is not overly convinced by the deal.
Despite this, Xavi recognizes that the club's current financial situation limits the deals he can do. He also understands that Neves may be the best option for the club if he needs midfield reinforcements.
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