Kansas City: Lionel Messi has revealed that the tears he shed after scoring in Argentina's FIFA World Cup 2026 opener against Algeria were not linked to his latest footballing milestone, but to personal struggles he had been dealing with away from the game.

The Argentina captain became visibly emotional after opening the scoring in his side's 3-0 victory over Algeria on Wednesday, a match in which he went on to score a historic hat-trick and equal Miroslav Klose's all-time World Cup goals record of 16.

While many fans believed the emotional moment was connected to the achievement, Messi later explained that it stemmed from a difficult period in his personal life.

"It had nothing to do with football, I went through some difficult days," Messi said after the match.

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"It was a matter totally unrelated to sports; I went through some difficult, complicated days."

The 38-year-old later thanked his teammates for helping him navigate the challenging period.

"It was something unrelated to the game. I went through some difficult and complicated days. I'm grateful to the team and all my teammates. They were always by my side and gave me the strength to get through this," he said.

Despite the emotional backdrop, Messi produced one of the finest performances of his World Cup career.

His first goal came in the 17th minute after Rodrigo De Paul's quick free-kick found him in space. He added a second from close range after pouncing on a rebound from Alexis Mac Allister's effort before completing his hat-trick in the 76th minute with a trademark curling finish following a dazzling run.

The treble saw Messi move level with Germany legend Miroslav Klose at the top of the World Cup scoring charts with 16 goals, while also making him only the second player, after Cristiano Ronaldo, to score in five different World Cups.

However, the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner played down the significance of the numbers.

"It's an honour. Mbappe and Ronaldo are there, but those numbers don't mean anything. They're just statistics. Ronaldo is one of the greatest, and he's not in first place, so it's just one statistic," he said as quoted by Argentine newspaper La Nacion.

Messi also praised Argentina's overall display as the defending champions began their title defence in dominant fashion.

"We were well-positioned when we had the ball and we managed the game very well. We had the experience of the last one and nobody gives anything away," Messi said.

Argentina's victory puts them in a strong position in Group J ahead of their next match against Austria on June 22.