Messi wins BBC award, Gary Neville set for ITV 'axe', topless fan faces jail time

As the dust settles, reality grows. Lionel Messi is world champion. Argentina beat France in the biggest ever World Cup final at the Lusail Iconic Stadium on Sunday, lifting that impressive trophy for the third time. And there are plenty of reactions to take in as the return of club football looms on the horizon.

Messi opened the scoring from the penalty spot after 23 minutes before Angel di Maria completed a scintillating counterattack to add a second in the first half. Argentina were on speed control as France only managed to put in a shot midway through the second period.

But Lionel Scaloni's side were stunned late in the game, with Kylian Mbappe netting a penalty himself and then a superb volley in the space of a minute to level the score from nowhere. Messi thought he had won it in the second half of extra time before Mbappe completed his hat-trick with another kick two minutes from time, sending him into a shootout.

Other heroics from Emi Martinez saw him save Kingsley Coman's penalty before successfully winning a mental game with Aurelien Tchouameni, who fired wide. Gonzalo Montiel scored the winner of Argentina's clean sheet victory on penalties, sparking wild celebrations in Qatar and around the world.

Express Sport provides regular updates throughout the day, with plenty of feedback to come.

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6 hours ago22:59Jordan Seward

Hernandez pushed a pal from France amid period panic

French star Theo Hernandez wrongfully pushed team-mate Randal Kolo Muani onto the pitch on Sunday after the rest of the players ran off to celebrate Kylian Mbappe's 81st-minute equalizer against Argentina in the Champions League final. world Cup. Hernandez believed that Kolo Muani should stay on the pitch to prevent Argentina from restarting the game quickly and regaining the lead.

France were in imperious form in Qatar and reached the World Cup final after beating Poland, England and Morocco in their previous knockout matches. But they were second best for much of the showpiece event and lost two first-half goals as Lionel Messi converted from the penalty spot before Angel di Maria scored a second away from a great team move.

The Blues refused to give up, however, and found a way back into the game with 10 minutes to play as Mbappe netted a penalty. And the talented Paris Saint-Germain striker matched his side seconds later as he volleyed an acrobatic past Emi Martinez and into the corner of the net.

Mbappe took off to celebrate his goal and was soon mobbed by his teammates at the side of the pitch. Kolo Muani was the latest player to attempt to join the celebrations. But instead of being welcomed with open arms by the rest of the French players, the 24-year-old striker was pushed back onto the pitch as he crossed the touchline.

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6 hours ago22:21Jordan Seward

Messi wins BBC award

Lionel Messi has been named World Sport Star of the Year 2022 by BBC SPOTY.