The World Cup, game by game: remarkable photos from Qatar 2022
We’ve received more than half a million photographs during the tournament – with 30,000 from the World Cup final alone. Our picture editor has selected his favourite image from each fixture
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Group stage: Qatar 0-2 Ecuador
Not exactly the start the Qataris had hoped for. They were behind early and looked hopeless throughout this clash – so hopeless that many of their own fans starting leaving at half-time. Look closely and you’ll even spot a few supporters yawning.Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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England 6-2 Iran
Bukayo Saka led the way with two goals as England recorded a bumper win in their first match at the air-conditioned Khalifa International Stadium.Photograph: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
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Senegal 0-2 Netherlands
There was only one place the ball was heading as Senegal’s goalkeeper Édouard Mendy was beaten in the air by the Netherlands’ Cody Gakpo in the 84th minute. The Chelsea shot-stopper then parried Memphis Depay’s effort straight to Davy Klaassen, for the second goal. Not his finest match.Photograph: Thanassis Stavrakis/AP
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USA 1-1 Wales
Gareth Bale kindly performed his equalising celebration right in front of our own photographer, Tom Jenkins, making for this wonderfully expressive shot. Shame it was the only moment of joy for Wales in an otherwise dour World Cup.Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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Argentina 1-2 Saudi Arabia
The scenes of joy in the dressing after Saudi Arabia beat Argentina were wild. The sports minister got involved (pictured) and the country even declared a public holiday to mark the occasion.Photograph: Shaun Botterill/Fifa/Getty Images
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Denmark 0-0 Tunisia
This boy was in complete shock after receiving a pair of match-worn gloves from Denmark’s goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel following their stalemate with Tunisia.Photograph: Petr David Josek/AP
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Mexico 0-0 Poland
In a game where Robert Lewandowski missed a penalty, it was a tattoo on the neck of Mexico’s Jorge Sánchez which caught the eye. It reads: ‘I am who I am.’Photograph: Kieran McManus/Shutterstock
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France 4-1 Australia
One of the perks of World Cups is that photographers get to shoot from – and place their cameras in – novel positions. This remote-controlled shot captures the moment Craig Goodwin gave Australia a ninth-minute lead against France, who came back to win handsomely.Photograph: Elsa/Getty Images
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Morocco 0-0 Croatia
Who’d have thought that both of these sides would go on to reach the semi-finals. It all started for them with a goalless draw underneath raking sunlight – a photographer’s dream – at Al Bayt Stadium.Photograph: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
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Germany 1-2 Japan
So many good photographs from this match, it’s hard to choose a favourite. Before kick-off, Germany’s players made a powerful collective statement by placing their hands over their mouths to signify that they had been gagged by Fifa, after being denied the right to wear the OneLove armband. But by the final whistle, all eyes were on the scenes of bedlam as Japan celebrated their first huge upset of the tournament.Photograph: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
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Spain 7-0 Costa Rica
This photo was taken back when Spain looked like world beaters; as it happens, they were just Costa Rica beaters. It captures Gavi’s outrageous 74th-minute goal, struck with the outside of his boot.Photograph: Glyn Kirk/AFP/Getty Images
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Belgium 1-0 Canada
Canada somehow got beaten by Belgium, whom they largely outclassed. Alphonso Davies’s penalty miss didn’t exactly help. He could have become his country’s first men’s World Cup goalscorer in Canada’s opening match. He would eventually fulfil that ambition.Photograph: Rungroj Yongrit/EPA
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Switzerland 1-0 Cameroon
Cameroon’s Martin Hongla is pictured controlling a rather wet ball against Switzerland, who won courtesy of Breel Embolo’s goal early in the second half.Photograph: Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images
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Uruguay 0-0 South Korea
South Korea’s Hwang Ui-jo takes a shin in the chops during a challenge by Uruguay’s Diego Godín. Neither side scored though Uruguay twice hit the post.Photograph: Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters
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Portugal 3-2 Ghana
A second-half bonanza featuring five goals. Cristiano Ronaldo scored in a fifth consecutive World Cup and got the headlines, but goalkeeper Diogo Costa almost achieved infamy when he was robbed of the ball by Iñaki Williams in the dying seconds. Luckily for Costa, Williams slipped and scuffed his lines. Costa didn’t feel like smiling about it afterwards, apparently.Photograph: Javier García/Shutterstock
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Brazil 2-0 Serbia
Brazil’s Richarlison scored a brace, including this acrobatic effort, one of the goals of the tournament, while Neymar went off with a worrying injury.Photograph: Laurent Gilliéron/EPA
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Wales 0-2 Iran
Shades of Harald Schumacher as Wales goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey took out Iran’s Mehdi Taremi with this wild swipe. Hennessey was sent off, unlike Schumacher, and Wales were beaten by two late goals.Photograph: Rungroj Yongrit/EPA
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Qatar 1-3 Senegal
Qatar’s ‘ultras’ had a goal to cheer, but little else, as their side got dumped out of their own World Cup in record time not long after this, their second defeat.Photograph: Ozan Köse/AFP/Getty Images
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Netherlands 1-1 Ecuador
He copped a fair amount of flak during the tournament for his side’s underwhelming style of play, but the Netherlands’ head coach, Louis van Gaal, had at least one young fan in the tunnel before their match with Ecuador.Photograph: Héctor Vivas/Fifa/Getty Images
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England 0-0 USA
It’s hard to pick a frame which sums up just how turgid this game was – and then I remembered this offbeat shot of the crowd. Somehow ET’s blank expression captures it.Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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Tunisia 0-1 Australia
The scenes in Federation Square, Melbourne, when this goal went in were something else. Mitchell Duke’s delicately flicked header sailed into the far corner and put Australia in with a good shout of reaching the knockout stage.Photograph: Noushad Thekkayil/EPA
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Poland 2-0 Saudi Arabia
Poland’s Robert Lewandowski was just a little bit emotional after netting the first World Cup goal of his career. His teammates were pretty happy for him too.Photograph: Peter Bryne/PA
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France 2-1 Denmark
This looks like a regulation goal picture until you start to notice the facial expressions. France’s Kylian Mbappé was the scorer of this goal, by dint of a thigh. It was his second of the game as he terrorised the Danes.Photograph: Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters
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Argentina 2-0 Mexico
There was a lot of weight on Lionel Messi’s shoulders going into this fixture. There always is. The Argentinian delivered by scoring the first goal with a snapshot from range, followed by a curler from Enzo Fernandez.Photograph: Jose Breton/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
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Japan 0-1 Costa Rica
Costa Rica’s Joel Campbell almost relinquished his shorts to Kou Itakara in this rather blatant foul. One assumes the referee spotted it. The result of the match threw Group E wide open.Photograph: Dylan Martinez/Reuters
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Belgium 0-2 Morocco
This was the game when Morocco announced themselves as more than just decent. Zakaria Aboukhlal’s late breakaway goal sealed a famous win and sparked a cracking pile-on in front of the travelling fans.Photograph: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images
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Croatia 4-1 Canada
It’s the face mask that makes this doubly odd. Croatia’s Josko Gvardiol was one of a number of players to sport the protective gear at this World Cup. His side went behind after just two minutes as Canada heeded the pre-match music and got down to business. But Croatia soon showcased their enduring class as they ran out easy winners.Photograph: Hannah McKay/Reuters
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Spain 1-1 Germany
Angered by Germany’s pre-match protest in their first game, a group of fans held up pictures of their Muslim former player Mesut Özil in an effort to highlight what they viewed as hypocrisy. Özil had accused the German FA of racism and discrimination before his retirement.Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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Cameroon 3-3 Serbia
One of the most brilliant and bizarre goals of the tournament. Vincent Aboubakar’s scoop will go down in legend. And so too will this six-goal thriller, which Serbia had led 3-1.Photograph: Nick Potts/PA
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South Korea 2-3 Ghana
Ghana’s goalkeeper Lawrence Ati-Zigi looked pretty desperate during this goalmouth scramble as his side fought off a brave comeback from South Korea in another pulsating game.Photograph: Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Images
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Brazil 1-0 Switzerland
Exultant fans, a throng of photographers and a victorious Brazilian squad. Brazil’s 1-0 win courtesy of Casemiro’s glorious half-volley booked their place in the knockout stage with a game to spare.Photograph: Peter Cziborra/Reuters
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Portugal 2-0 Uruguay
Of course Cristiano Ronaldo claimed it was his goal. But it wasn’t. Replays and microchip technology inside the ball proved that the searching cross from Bruno Fernandes had flown straight into the net, despite CR7’s desperate attempts to get his noggin to it.Photograph: Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images
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Netherlands 2-0 Qatar
Just a week after the tournament started, Qatar’s miserable campaign was complete. The worst-performing hosts ever? Probably. Here, Ahmed Alaaeldin challenges for the ball with goalkeeper Andries Noppert.Photograph: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images
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Ecuador 1-2 Senegal
Ángelo Preciado’s face told the story as Kalidou Koulibaly’s 70th-minute volley sent Senegal into the knockout stage at Ecuador’s expense.Photograph: Patrick Smith/Fifa/Getty Images
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Wales 0-3 England
Wales experienced a similar sense of disappointment to Ecuador as they were put to the sword by two goals from Marcus Rashford and one from Phil Foden. They waited 64 years for this World Cup experience. It was hardly worth the wait.Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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Iran 0-1 USA
Iranian football fans continued their vociferous protests at the treatment of Mahsa Amini, who died while in the custody of Iran’s religious police in September. Some Iranians back home chanted ‘women, life, freedom’ as they celebrated Iran’s defeat to USA in this match, which sent them out of the competition.Photograph: José Sena Goulão/EPA
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Australia 1-0 Denmark
Riley McGree could hardly believe his eyes after watching Mathew Leckie’s solo goal against Denmark which booked the Socceroos a place in the last 16 as Group D runners-up.Photograph: Rolex dela Pena/EPA
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Tunisia 1-0 France
With their place in the last 16 already assured, France left Kylian Mbappé on the bench for the start of this clash. The photographers still couldn’t get enough of him.Photograph: Noushad Thekkayil/EPA
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Poland 0-2 Argentina
The photographer Matthias Hangst got creative during this fixture to illustrate that, ultimately, everyone is drawn towards Lionel Messi.Photograph: Matthias Hangst/Getty Images
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Saudi Arabia 1-2 Mexico
Saudi Arabia and Mexico both went out of the World Cup thanks to this result – agonisingly, the latter doing so on goal difference. In this expressive picture, Mexico’s Orbelín Pineda (left) and Saudi Arabia’s Mohamed Kanno are challenging for the ball.Photograph: Moisés Castillo/AP
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Croatia 0-0 Belgium
This was one of a catalogue of gilt-edged chances missed by Romelu Lukaku as Belgium, ranked second in the world, failed to progress from the group stage. It proved that Kevin De Bruyne’s controversial pre-tournament prediction was correct: Belgium really were too old to go all the way.Photograph: Alfredo Estrella/AFP/Getty Images
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Canada 1-2 Morocco
Alphonso Davies’s quivering bottom lip made for an eye-catching picture as Canada’s valiant World Cup campaign ended. Morocco, meanwhile, went through as surprise Group F winners.Photograph: Ibraheem Al Omari/Reuters
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Japan 2-1 Spain
Was it in? Was it out? This goal sparked wild debate and instructional videos on how perspective can be misleading. Ultimately goalline technology determined that Japan’s Kaoru Mitoma had kept the ball in play as he set up Ao Tanaka for the winning goal. Japan qualified as Group E winners, Spain scraped through as runners-up.Photograph: Petr David Josek/AP
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Costa Rica 2-4 Germany
Arguably the best photograph from the whole World Cup. It shows Germany’s Kai Havertz being presented with the player of the match trophy ... only one slight problem: Germany had just been knocked out.Photograph: Álex Caparrós/Fifa/Getty Images
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Ghana 0-2 Uruguay
After what he did to Ghana at the World Cup in 2010 when his skulduggery cost them a place in the semi-final, many Ghanaians will have taken great consolation from seeing Luis Suárez in tears at the end of this match. The result in the other Group H game sent Uruguay out by the narrowest of margins: goals scored.Photograph: Maja Hitij/Fifa/Getty Images
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South Korea 2-1 Portugal
The South Koreans were delirious when they heard the news that Uruguay had beaten Ghana 2-0, because it meant their late victory against Portugal – courtesy of Hwang Hee-chan’s injury-time strike – had vaulted them into the top two. Players had waited together on the pitch for eight agonising minutes following the final whistle before their fate was confirmed.Photograph: Molly Darlington/Reuters
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Serbia 2-3 Switzerland
Granit Xhaka (right) got himself in hot water with the Serbian players – not for the first time – after grabbing his crotch while looking in their direction during this predictably testy clash. The moment itself was caught on video, but Nikola Milenkovic certainly saw it.Photograph: Javier Soriano/AFP/Getty Images
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Cameroon 1-0 Brazil
Cameroon’s Vincent Aboubakar didn’t care one jot that he got sent off for this shirtless celebration after scoring a 93rd-minute winner against Brazil. He knew Cameroon were going out of the World Cup anyway, and he even got a handshake and a wry smile from the referee as he was shown his second yellow card.Photograph: Dylan Martinez/Reuters
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Last 16: Netherlands 3-1 USA
‘Me, me, me.’ Fifa’s president, Gianni Infantino, tried to make himself the centre of attention at this World Cup and this pre-match picture captures him nicely. Shame you cant see his trainers. In terms of the match itself, the Netherlands looked to be coasting to victory before Haji Wright’s late goal briefly threatened a comeback.Photograph: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images
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Argentina 2-1 Australia
One of the saves of the tournament from Argentina’s Emiliano Martínez, as he denied the young Australian Garang Kuol at the end of this match. Australia had looked dead and buried before a wild deflection gave them hope. Martínez and his teammates all flopped to the floor in the wake of this stop, such was its importance.Photograph: Paul Childs/Reuters
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France 3-1 Poland
Kylian Mbappé’s pace is the stuff of defensive nightmares and he gave Poland a torrid time in the knockout stages, scoring twice. Meanwhile, Olivier Giroud became France’s all-time leading goalscorer, but surely he won’t keep that title for too long.Photograph: Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
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England 3-0 Senegal
Despite being under pressure early on, England swept past Senegal with three goals either side of the break. One of them was scored by the much-maligned Jordan Henderson, who struck up an unlikely bromance with Jude Bellingham.Photograph: Mike Egerton/PA
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Japan 1-1 Croatia (Croatia won 1-3 on penalties)
The first match of the tournament to end in a penalty shootout – and it was an odd one. Japan’s penalties were shockingly tame. This one by Takumi Minamino was easily saved.Photograph: John Sibley/Reuters
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Brazil 4-1 South Korea
‘Dance Vini, dance’ they said. Brazil were irresistible in the first half as they put four goals past South Korea. Vinícius Júnior had taken plenty of stick for his celebrations, but Neymar and his mates were only too happy to perform with him as the goals flowed.Photograph: Manu Fernández/AP
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Morocco 0-0 Spain (Morocco won 3-0 on penalties)
Walid Regragui, the head coach of Morocco, was given the bumps after his side saw off Spain on penalties. Spain had enjoyed a predictably large share of possession but did nothing useful with it.Photograph: Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images
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Portugal 6-1 Switzerland
The big news before this clash was that the Portuguese legend and self-proclaimed greatest player ever, Cristiano Ronaldo, had been dropped to the bench for his petulant behaviour in the previous match. His young understudy, Gonçalo Ramos, duly scored a hat-trick.Photograph: Buda Mendes/Getty Images
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Quarter-finals: Croatia 1-1 Brazil (Croatia won 4-2 on penalties)
That feeling when you should’ve stepped up for the first penalty, but instead you were slated to go fifth and your teammates faltered. Neymar was crestfallen, Brazil were out and they only had themselves to blame.Photograph: Héctor Vivas/Fifa/Getty Images
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Netherlands 2-2 Argentina (Argentina won 4-3 on penalties)
Another contender for best picture of the tournament. The contrast of emotions, the muck-housery of the Argentinians celebrating in the faces of the Dutch – it’s a single frame that speaks volumes of a tumultuous and ill-tempered contest. The Netherlands looked beaten until a remarkable comeback as they threw the big men up top, but Wout Weghoust’s late brace proved to be in vain.Photograph: Paul Childs/Reuters
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Morocco 1-0 Portugal
What better way to celebrate a quarter-final victory than with your mum? Morocco’s Sofiane Boufal is pictured here, revelling in history: Morocco had become the first African nation to reach a World Cup semi-final.Photograph: Luca Bruno/AP
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England 1-2 France
The maligned ITV commentator Sam Matterface got panned for cruelly describing Harry Kane’s second penalty as Chris Waddle-esque. But in truth he wasn’t wrong. Kane’s late penalty, which could have tied the match at 2-2, sailed hopelessly over the bar and with it went England’s World Cup dream.Photograph: Lee Smith/Reuters
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Semi-finals: Argentina 3-0 Croatia
Argentina’s fans have poured into Qatar in their thousands for this World Cup and it seems as though almost everyone in this picture is wearing the sky blue colours of the Albiceleste. They got the win they were hoping for via two goals from Julián Álvarez and one from Lionel Messi from the spot.Photograph: Abed Alrahman Alkahlout/Quds Net News/Zuma Press/Shutterstock
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France 2-0 Morocco
Theo Hernandez’s improvised fifth-minute strike sent France on their way to the finals as Morocco’s dream finally ended. It was France’s first clean sheet of the tournament and Antoine Griezmann was inspired in midfield.Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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Third place playoff: Croatia 2-1 Morocco
Third-placed playoffs are a bizarre idea but this game was played with real verve. Stranger yet is having a podium to crown the ‘winners’. Still, Croatia enjoyed their moment.Photograph: Buda Mendes/Getty Images
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World Cup final: Argentina 3-3 France (Argentina won 4-2 on penalties)
Campeones del Mundo! Lionel Messi’s dream – and his trophy cabinet – was complete at last after a World Cup final for the ages. The game swung back and forth, with Messi and Mbappé driving their sides relentlessly. The Argentinian got a brace; the Frenchman got a hat-trick. But only one could emerge victorious. It just had to be Messi.Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
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