Never before in World Cup history had a team trailed by two goals in the 75th minute of a knockout tie and won it inside 90. At Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium, that changed — and the defending champions, Argentina, once again proved that surrender is simply not in their nature. For almost the entire evening, it looked as though 39-year-old Lionel Messi's sixth World Cup was ending in painful defeat. Egypt, through to the last 16 for the first time in their history, led emphatically thanks to goals from Yasser Ibrahim and Mostafa Zico, and it could have been 3-0 but for a strike ruled out by the video assistant referee (VAR). So bleak was the picture that Messi himself squandered a first-half penalty — the fourth he has missed from eight in his World Cup career.
Then, in the final ten minutes, with the Argentine dream seemingly buried, a storm swept across the pitch. Cristian Romero's precise header in the 79th minute lit the fuse, and barely four minutes later Messi struck a historic goal — his eighth of this tournament and the 21st of his World Cup career. The peerless captain set yet another record along the way, scoring in a sixth consecutive knockout match. The equaliser unleashed scenes of disbelief among the world champions, and in stoppage time Enzo Fernández crowned the comeback with the winner. "We have a phenomenal group, a group that never gives up no matter the difficulties and adversity — we're always together," Fernández said afterwards.
Yet the joy on the pitch stood in stark contrast to the despair in the Egyptian camp. "We have been treated unfairly today. We have suffered injustice," manager Hossam Hassan declared bluntly. So crushed was he that he vowed not to watch another match at the tournament, insisting his side had bettered the reigning champions in everything except the final scoreline. Against that backdrop, a tearful Messi and an emotional Lionel Scaloni now turn towards their next opponents — Switzerland or Colombia. Can this spirit carry Argentina to become the first side since 1962 to retain the title, or was the Egyptian drama merely a stay of execution in Messi's last dance?
