Argentina deserved to qualify for FIFA World Cup: Lionel Messi

Hat-trick hero Lionel Messi believes Argentina deserve to go to Russia next summer after he saved their World Cup dreams. "We deserve to be there after what we have gone through during qualifying," Messi told Marca. "We did not deserve to miss out and our place at the tournament is merited.

Lionel Messi. Pic/AFP

"Of course, things were made even more difficult for us when we went a goal behind. It isn't easy to play here with the unique conditions (the high altitude in Quito) but fortunately for us everything went perfectly."