Note: This is story first appeared in The Beautiful Game by CNN Sports, our daily newsletter on all things World Cup. To subscribe, click here.

Take a bow Lionel Messi. A hat-trick from the greatest player in history is just what this World Cup needed and capped off a brilliant day of action yesterday. Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland also played a wonderful supporting role with two goals each as the superstars took center stage in North America.

You get the sense that that was perfect motivation for another living legend who is set to make his first appearance at this summer’s World Cup today. Cristiano Ronaldo continues to ignore Father Time and he’ll have his chance to shine as Portugal plays in the first game of the day.

But that match will likely mean more than just the result, with it being the team’s first World Cup game since the death of Diogo Jota. Wednesday also sees England play its opening group match, as the soccer-mad nation hopes for its first World Cup win since 1966.

All that plus a host of other news from the last 24 hours in today’s bumper edition.

Main Thing: Portugal plans to honor Diogo Jota in its World Cup opener

The sport of soccer was put into perspective when Liverpool and Portugal forward Diogo Jota died, alongside his brother André Silva, in a car crash last year.

The shocking reality was scarcely believable at the time and its impact is still felt by those who were closest to him. Jota had only married his long-term partner, Rute Cardoso, with whom he has three children, less than two weeks before the crash.

It also had a real impact on his teammates, with Liverpool stars admitting that they struggled to focus on the sport this season while trying to properly grieve for their friend.

It means Portugal’s players not only carry the weight of expectation on their shoulders this tournament, but also the weight of grief for a teammate who would have been among them this summer.

The Portuguese national team has said it is playing for Jota.

The Portuguese national team has said it is playing for Jota.

Carlos Rodrigues/Getty Images

Jota was actually named as an honorary member of the team when manager Roberto Martínez selected the squad this year, and Portugal’s Prime Minister Luís Montenegro recently gifted every player a bracelet with their names next to Jota’s.

The team wored them out in its first game of the tournament against DR Congo, which ended in a shocking 1-1 draw in Houston.

“They made sure that it was a wristband that we could wear on the pitch,” Portugal midfielder Vitinha told reporters.

“He let us choose if we wanted to use it or not, during the day or during the match. We received it with a lot of affection and we chose to use it.”

But the pain of loss will be a real test for this Portuguese team. Carrying the hopes of not only a nation but also the dreams of Jota who had always dreamed of playing at a World Cup.

“We feel this and we want to win it, not just because it’s a World Cup and it’s everybody’s dream, but for him as well,” Vitinha told CNN Sports earlier this year. (CNN)

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