The Argentine national team was on the brink of elimination from the World Cup, trailing Egypt 0:2, but managed to turn the game around. In the last 23 minutes of regular and stoppage time, the reigning world champions scored three goals and snatched victory — 3:2.
The Round of 16 match held on Tuesday in Atlanta was not going in favor of the Argentinians for a long time. In the first half, Yasser Ibrahim put Egypt ahead, and Lionel Messi soon missed the chance to equalize — his penalty shot was saved by goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir.
Despite Argentina's pressure, Egypt came even closer to a sensation after the break. In the 67th minute, Mostafa Zico sent the second ball into the opponent's net, making the score 2:0.
However, it was after this that the game completely changed.
In the 79th minute, Cristian Romero reduced the deficit after a pass from Messi, and four minutes later, the Argentine captain himself restored parity, and already in the second minute of stoppage time, Enzo Fernandez scored the winning goal after a cross from Lautaro Martinez.
In 23 minutes, Argentina turned an almost hopeless situation into victory and kept the fight for the championship title alive.
Even despite the missed penalty, Messi once again became one of the main heroes of the match. By scoring his team's second goal, he found the net for the ninth consecutive match in the knockout stage of the World Cup, breaking his own record. Additionally, this goal became his 21st in World Cups — the best record in the tournament's history.
After this goal, Messi also became the sole leader of the current World Cup's top scorers list, surpassing Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland.
This match once again demonstrated why Argentina is considered one of the main favorites of the tournament: the team managed to turn the game around even after conceding two goals. For Egypt, however, the defeat was particularly painful — until the last minutes, the team was close to one of the biggest upsets of the tournament.
In the quarterfinals, the Argentine national team will face Switzerland.
At this point, three more quarterfinal matchups have also been determined: France vs. Morocco, England vs. Norway, and Spain vs. Belgium.
This World Cup is being held for the first time with 48 teams. The tournament is hosted by the USA, Canada, and Mexico, with the final match scheduled for July 19.
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