Lionel Messi escaped a red card before scoring a World Cup hat-trick

Former Manchester City defender Nedum Onuoha, also on ESPN, said the referee was perhaps entitled to miss it in real time. VAR was not. “When the player was on the floor, you could see Messi had a level of concern because he knew he’d potentially done something that could get him in trouble. I understand why the referee missed it. But for VAR to look at that and say ‘no, that’s all fine’ — I personally think that is worthy of a red card.”

No ha nacido el árbitro que le saque tarjeta roja a Messi en un Mundial. pic.twitter.com/IUnlxvrofI

— Pascal (@beltrandelrio) June 17, 2026

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The detail that fuelled the wider conversation: Marciniak is the same referee who took charge of the 2022 World Cup final, in which Argentina beat France on penalties. Former Egyptian international Mohamed Aboutrika voiced concerns on beIN Sports after the final whistle, according to Foot Africa, questioning how Marciniak had not been called to the monitor. On social media the reaction was swift. “Messi escaping red. No VAR check. Jesus. Just give Argentina the trophy,” one widely shared post read, according to the Daily Mail. “Let’s be honest: if anyone else had committed that foul, they’d have been sent off. The only reason Messi stayed on the pitch is because he’s Messi,” said another, reported by the Daily Star.

The controversy was reported prominently by A Bola, Portugal’s leading sports daily, which first published the Onuoha and Moreno quotes alongside the incident.

Messi, named Player of the Match, addressed the goals record after the game. “It’s an honor to be there because of what it means. Being alongside Klose, Ronaldo (Nazário) is there too, but I don’t think it means anything, right? Mbappé is there too, since he scored two goals today, but in the end it’s just a statistic,” he told the media. He did not address the tackle.

Argentina face Austria next in Group J on June 22.