Argentina once again demonstrated why she defends the title of champion of the World. When he seemed on the verge of elimination against a Egypt that had neutralized it with effective counterattacks, the Albiceleste reacted at the right moment to sign a memorable comeback.
With the score 0-2 and just over 20 minutes left, Lionel Messi’s leadership appeared. The Argentine captain, who had previously missed a penalty and hit a free kick when the match was 0-1, began the reaction with an assist for Cristian “Cuti” Romero to score a goal.
Minutes later, Messi himself scored the equalizer to restore hope to his team. Already in added time, a fast counterattack led by Lautaro Martínez ended with a definition by Enzo Fernández, who sealed the final 3-2 and classified Argentina to the quarterfinals of the World Cup.
Messi went from frustration to once again becoming the protagonist by scoring the tying goal, the eighth he has scored in this 2026 World Cup, with which he regained the lead in the fight for the Golden Boot. In addition, he extended his streak of consecutive games scoring in World Cups to nine. At the end of the match, the Argentine captain burst into tears, conscious of having overcome one of the most difficult moments of the tournament and of keeping alive the dream of winning another world title.
With this long-suffering victory, Argentina advances to the quarterfinals, where it will face the winner of the series between Colombia and Switzerland, after overcoming its second consecutive tie to the limit after the agonizing victory previously achieved against Cape Verde.
