June 17 (Reuters) - An emotional Lionel Messi was wiping his tears with his shirt after scoring Argentina's first goal against Algeria in the World Cup, a strike that marked the beginning of a memorable performance where he scored a hat-trick in a 3-0 win.
But while his first World Cup treble had many Argentina fans in tears of joy, Messi said he was crying for a personal reason not connected with the sport.
"Why did I cry? It was something completely unrelated to football. I went through some difficult days," said Messi, who is playing in a record sixth World Cup, after Tuesday's match.
"But I'm grateful to the entire delegation and my teammates because they were always by my side, giving me a lot of strength to help me get through it."
A source close to Messi's family told Reuters his father was dealing with health issues.
Local media reported that his father was in hospital in Argentina and that the situation had worried the player in recent weeks.
Messi, who turns 39 next week, has equalled Miroslav Klose's record of scoring 16 goals at World Cup tournaments.
Argentina will continue their title defence with a Group J game against Austria on Monday.
(Reporting by Chiranjit Ojha in Bengaluru and Buenos Aires bureau; Editing by Toby Chopra and Ken Ferris)
