Miloš Degenek believes in three things: family, the Socceroos and God.

Well, two gods.

The first god is the maker of heaven and earth, water and light, land and sea, night and day. The second god, to turn a Bill Shankly phrase, is the maker of something a little more important than all that.

But in this lifetime, there's only one maker Degenek will be meeting, and that will be on Sunday AEDT when Australia faces Lionel Messi and Argentina for a spot in the World Cup quarterfinals.

The two countries have faced each other seven times since their first meeting in 1988, which was the first and only time the plucky Australians defeated the South American giants.

Their most recent clash came in 2007 when the Socceroos' last "Golden Generation" narrowly lost 1-0.

A 20-year-old Messi played the full 90 minutes that day, though didn't find the back of the net.

History has a way of coming back around, though, and there is a creeping sense of return for Australia at this World Cup.

It's been almost the same number of years since the Socceroos last made it to the round of 16, and they're doing it with a team that head coach Graham Arnold — who faced Argentina five times as a player, including in two 1994 World Cup qualifiers — has dubbed "the new Golden Generation", ripping them out from the long shadow of that 2006 side.

The last time Arnold faced Argentina as a player, though, God had a slightly different name.

"If I go back to 1993, it's very similar," Arnold said.

"They had Diego Maradona, they've got now Lionel Messi.

"We drew 1-1 in Sydney and lost 1-0 in Buenos Aires. We're not going to Buenos Aires this time. We've got our fans here and it's going to be an even feel.

"It's a special memory and will be in the future, but for me it's full focus on keeping the players' energy right and the belief is there."

Degenek is a man of faith and there is only one god he respects and fears. But it's not the one vying for this World Cup, who, at 35 years old, will almost certainly be his last.

"I always loved Messi and I think he's the greatest to ever play the game," Degenek said. 

"[But] it's not an honour to play against him because he's just a human, as we all are.

"It's an honour to be in a round of 16 of a World Cup, that's an honour in itself. Whether we played Argentina or whether we played Poland, it still would've been an honour.

"Apart from that, it's 11 against 11. There's not 11 Messis, there's one.

"We know their squad: It's full of stars. Even [Paulo] Dybala's on the bench, [Lautaro] Martinez comes off the bench. It's a squad that's immaculate."

If the Socceroos are to not just match history but to exceed it, they must stop one of the most unstoppable footballers the world has ever seen; a national talisman, a Barcelona legend, a seven-time Ballon D'Or winner. So how exactly does this rowdy bunch of Australians plan to do it?

Well, we all know the motto by now.