Argentina concluded the group stage with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Jordan at Dallas Stadium, preserving their unbeaten record in the competition.
Lionel Messi emerged from the bench to score a spectacular free-kick, guiding the South American side to another impressive result.
The goal also took Messi’s tally to six in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, strengthening his influence on Argentina’s title defence.
Manager Lionel Scaloni reshuffled his squad by making nine alterations to the team that defeated Austria earlier in the week.
Messi started among the substitutes, resulting in Argentina fielding a World Cup starting XI without him for the first time since their 2006 quarter-final against Germany.
The veteran forward entered the action just after the hour mark and quickly reminded everyone of his match-winning quality.
Argentina controlled possession throughout the opening half and came close to taking an early lead when an offside decision denied Giovani Lo Celso.
The midfielder responded brilliantly in the 19th minute, firing a superb left-footed effort into the top corner to break the deadlock.
Soon afterwards, Marcos Senesi earned a penalty following a foul inside the area, and Lautaro Martínez confidently converted to double Argentina’s advantage.
Jordan briefly threatened a comeback after Mousa Al-Taamari finished a flowing attacking move early in the second half to make it 2-1.
Argentina, however, remained firmly in control and restored its two-goal cushion in the 80th minute.
Messi curled a perfectly struck free-kick around the defensive wall and beyond the goalkeeper to put the result beyond doubt.
The strike saw the 39-year-old become the first footballer to score in seven consecutive FIFA World Cup matches. It also increased his overall World Cup goal tally to 19, extending his own record as the competition’s highest-scoring player.
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