The extraordinary numbers behind Lionel Messi – and the all-time World Cup record now in his grasp

Analysis: Messi has long been called ‘incomparable’, but if that greatness manifested itself largely in the colours of Barcelona, it may have come later in life in the Albiceleste of Argentina

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The journey took him from Gelsenkirchen to Kansas City . It began as an 18-year-old and reached a new level as a 38-year-old. Argentina ’s youngest World Cup scorer is also their oldest. He is also, inimitably, Lionel Messi .

Messi’s first World Cup was ended in a game in which Miroslav Klose scored…