ATLANTA — Lionel Messi sparked a remarkable late comeback as defending champion Argentina recovered from two goals down to beat Egypt 3-2 on Tuesday and book its place in the FIFA World Cup quarterfinals.
Messi scored his eighth goal of the tournament and a record-extending 21st World Cup goal in the 83rd minute before Enzo Fernández completed the dramatic turnaround in stoppage time, capping one of the greatest comebacks in World Cup history.
Argentina had appeared destined for elimination after falling 2-0 behind, with Yasser Ibrahim opening the scoring in the 15th minute before Mostafa Zico doubled Egypt’s lead in the 67th.
Cristian Romero ignited the comeback by pulling one back in the 79th minute before Messi equalized four minutes later, setting the stage for Fernández’s dramatic winner.
“This is a phenomenal group that never gives up,” Fernández said. “We came here to enjoy another World Cup and we want to win it again.”
Argentina will face either Switzerland or Colombia in Saturday’s quarterfinal in Kansas City as it continues its bid to become the first nation since Brazil in 1962 to successfully defend the World Cup title.
For much of the night, however, Argentina looked set for a shock exit.
Messi squandered an early opportunity to equalize when Egypt goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir saved his penalty after Haissem Hassan fouled Nicolás Tagliafico inside the area. The Argentina captain later struck the post and was denied again by Shobeir, who also produced an outstanding save to stop Julián Álvarez from close range.
The missed penalty was Messi’s second of the tournament and his fourth in World Cup history, leaving him with four successful spot kicks from eight attempts at the finals.
Egypt briefly thought it had extended its lead further when Zico found the net earlier in the second half, but the goal was ruled out following a VAR review for a foul in the build-up.
Zico eventually did score a legitimate second goal, but Argentina’s relentless late surge ended Egypt’s memorable World Cup campaign.
An emotional Messi was reduced to tears after the final whistle as Argentina completed another unforgettable chapter in its title defence.
Source: Saudi Gazette