It is the FIFA World Cup 2026 top scorers against the tournament's meanest defence. With Argentina having netted 19 goals and Spain conceding just once over seven matches, both goalkeepers are likely to play major roles in tonight’s showpiece at New York New Jersey Stadium.

When Lionel Messi walks onto the pitch in New Jersey in the early hours of Monday (Bangladesh time) to face Spain’s teenage sensation Lamine Yamal, the FIFA World Cup 2026 will reach its final act.

The South Americans are striving to become the first team since Brazil in 1962 to win back-to-back World Cups, while Spain are eyeing a second title after their maiden victory in 2010.

Lionel Messi has already won almost everything football has to offer. He has lifted the FIFA World Cup, collected a record number of Ballon d’Or awards and inspired Argentina through some of the greatest moments in the sport’s history.

The tennis legend, who retired from professional tennis in 2024 after a glittering career that saw him win 22 Grand Slam titles, remains deeply passionate about football and will be watching from home as two footballing giants battle for global glory.

There is no bigger prize in football than the FIFA World Cup, and no bigger stage than its final. Yet when Argentina and Spain meet in Monday's showpiece, the spotlight will inevitably fall on two players at opposite ends of football's timeline.

Long before Lionel Messi became a global icon, Spain coach Luis de la Fuente had already experienced first-hand how quickly the diminutive forward could turn a game on its head.

The stakes could not be higher than they are at a World Cup final. And the grand finale at the New York-New Jersey Stadium on Monday (1:00am Bangladesh Time) could hardly have been scripted better, with Lionel Messi's Argentina taking on Lamine Yamal's Spain in a showdown set to bring the curtain down on the biggest edition in the competition's history.

Mikel Oyarzabal has scored in the six finals he has played as a professional.

Argentina may already have scaled the summit of world football in Qatar, but the reigning champions have shown throughout this World Cup that lifting the trophy once has done little to dull their appetite for another.

If Argentina are to retain the trophy they won in Qatar in 2022, they must first break down a Spanish defence that has been virtually impenetrable throughout the competition. Luis de la Fuente's side has conceded just one goal in seven matches, making defensive discipline the cornerstone of its run to the final.

The Arsenal dynamo became just the fourth Englishman to score a hat-trick at the global finals, after Geoff Hurst in 1966, Gary Lineker 20 years later and then Harry Kane at Russia 2018.

The two nations will battle for the title on Monday [1am, Bangladesh Time] at the East Rutherford, N.J.

This is England’s best finish at the global finals since they triumphed on home soil in 1966.

Mbappe finished his third World Cup campaign with 10 goals to the lead the Golden Boot standings, two ahead of Messi.

While Latin Americans have traditionally rallied behind football teams from the region who adadvance deep into the World Cup tournament, a flood of memes, jokes and criticism has made it clear there is one exception: Argentina.

A tournament official confirmed that protocols dictate that training must be suspended whenever lightning is detected within an eight-mile radius of the site.

Tonight’s final caps a World Cup where fans were willing to shell out more than ever for a seat at the quadrennial showpiece, as ticket buyers confounded even the greatest cynics in the face of sky-high prices.

Former Spain coach Vicente del Bosque believes Spain hold the edge ahead of the FIFA World Cup final against Argentina but has warned that the defending champions' resilience, experience and tactical discipline make them dangerous opponents.

There are rooftops draped in blue and white and murals of Lionel Messi everywhere -- but this is not Argentina, it is Bangladesh where football-crazy fans are again celebrating their unique bond with the South American giants.