Messi, Ronaldo exit World Cup in Round of 16

KAZAN, Russia — What Lionel Messi has never done, 19-year-old Kylian Mbappe did twice.

The quick-footed French teenager scored two goals in a five-minute span of the second half to help his team rally for a 4-3 victory over Argentina. Saturday’s victory gave France a spot in the World Cup quarterfinals against Uruguay on Friday at Nizhny Novgorod.

Messi, who turned 31 during his fourth and possibly final World Cup, set up a pair of goals but again failed to score in a knockout match at the biggest event in soccer.

Mbappe got his two in his first attempt.

“Of course, as I’ve already and always said, in the World Cup you have all the top level players so it is an opportunity to show what you can do and what your abilities are,” said Mbappe, who now has three goals in Russia. “There is no better place than a World Cup.”

He became the second teenager to score multiple goals in a knockout match at the World Cup. Pele was the other, doing it twice at 17 at the 1958 World Cup.

For Argentina, it was the first time the team had scored three goals in a competitive match and lost. For Messi, it meant he still has never won a major international title with Argentina.

■ Uruguay 2, Portugal 1 — At Sochi, Russia, Edinson Cavani scored twice and Cristiano Ronaldo none, as Uruguay advanced in the Round of 16.

On the same day Lionel Messi was sent home in Argentina’s loss, the other “GOAT” at this tournament was also eliminated. It was two weeks ago that Ronaldo scored a hat trick in the same stadium against Spain, stroking his chin after the first goal to imply he was the “greatest of all time.”

There was no goal from Ronaldo this time. Everywhere he went, the Portugal great was hounded by two or three Uruguayan defenders.