Paz on her four goals, Argentina's chances and Brazil 2027

The exclusive club of players to have scored at least four goals in a single match at the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup™ welcomed a new member on Tuesday, 8 September.

There were five before the Group A clash between Argentina and Benin. Now there are six.

With no shortage of flair, Annika Paz, one of the players to watch ahead of the tournament, gave the Benin defence a torrid afternoon and fully deserved to join the likes of Canada's Christine Sinclair, DPR Korea's Kim Un-hwa, Nigeria's Asisat Oshoala, Sweden's Stina Blackstenius and France's Liana Joseph, to have scored at least four times in a single U-20 Women's World Cup contest.

"I'm simply happy," the humble Paz told FIFA after receiving the Visa Player of the Match award. "Whenever I can help the team, I'm happy. If I can do that by scoring, even better, but my goal is always to contribute something to the team."

The Inter Milan forward began her scoring spree at the end of the first half. With Argentina already 2-0 up, Paz's header first struck the post before finding the back of the net, effectively ending any remaining suspense.

In the second half, she converted a penalty at second attempt before benefiting from a fortunate rebound off her own shot to complete her hat-trick. She then added a fourth with the instincts of a true poacher, turning her day's work into a historic feat.

"She's my attacking partner, our No9," said Mercedes Diz, who also scored twice. "I'm really happy for her because she also found the back of the net, just like me. Scoring four goals isn't something everyone can do. I just want to congratulate her and tell her how proud I am of her."

Despite a day she will remember for a long time, Paz was keen to keep the focus away from her own achievements, instead praising Argentina's collective performance as they recorded the biggest win in the history of their women's FIFA competition appearances.

"We're very happy to have taken the three points and scored so many goals, because that's very important. But the star is always the team. Obviously, I'm very happy to have been able to contribute. Now we have to start thinking about Mexico."

Having already made her senior debut, Paz is naturally dreaming of big things – including the possibility of travelling to Brazil in a few months' time for the FIFA Women's World Cup 2027™ - yet she remains grounded through it all.

"I prefer to enjoy each day and everything I'm lucky enough to be experiencing today," she said. "You never know what might happen. So I try to stay in the present, enjoy this tournament with my team-mates and give my very best.

"We all have the motivation and desire to play at a Women's World Cup with the senior national team one day. But today, we're lucky enough to be playing at this U-20 Women's World Cup, which is already something unique for us. We still have the ambition to go even further, while staying focused on this tournament and making the most of the experience."

Sinclair recently said to FIFA that her five-goal haul against England at U-20 Women's World Cup in 2002 made her feel like she was "on cloud nine".

It is safe to say that all of Argentina will now be keeping their fingers crossed that Paz can stay there for as long as possible in Poland.