Argentina Complete Stunning Comeback to Knock Egypt Out of World Cup
Argentina staged one of the great World Cup comebacks to defeat Egypt 3-2 and advance to the quarterfinals, overturning a two-goal deficit in dramatic fashion.
The match began cagey and ended in chaos. In the 30th minute, Lionel Messi’s curling free-kick crashed against the crossbar. Eight minutes later, Julian Alvarez thought he had broken the deadlock but was denied by an outstanding save from Egypt goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir. The first half finished 0-0, with both sides struggling to find a breakthrough.
Egypt struck first 14 minutes after the restart. Marwan Attia delivered a perfect cross and Yasser Ibrahim rose above Manchester United defender Lisandro Martinez to power a header past Emiliano Martinez. Argentina’s response was immediate but wasteful. In the 21st minute they were awarded a penalty after a foul on Marcos Tagliafico, but Messi’s spot-kick was superbly saved by Shobeir. It was the Egyptian keeper’s second penalty save of the tournament.
Egypt doubled their lead in the 67th minute. After seeing an earlier effort from Mostafa Ziko ruled out for a foul on Martinez, the Pharaohs caught Argentina on the break. A neat cutback from Hissen Hassan found Ziko, who made no mistake to make it 2-0 and send the Egyptian fans into wild celebrations.
Argentina, however, refused to surrender. In the 79th minute, Messi swung in a brilliant cross and Cristian Romero met it with a towering header to pull one back. The goal sparked life into La Albiceleste. Five minutes later, Messi himself was on the scoresheet, slotting home to make it 2-2 and complete the comeback.
With the game seemingly heading for extra time, Enzo Fernandez broke Egyptian hearts in the 92nd minute. Lautaro Martinez whipped in a cross and Fernandez rose highest to nod the winner, sending Argentina through to the quarterfinals in the cruelest fashion for Egypt.
Records Broken
It was a night of history for Messi. The Argentina captain became the first player ever to score in six consecutive World Cup knockout games. He also equalled the all-time World Cup assist record with 9. Messi has now contributed a goal or assist in every game of the 2026 World Cup so far: 3 vs Algeria, 2 vs Austria, 1 vs Jordan, 1 vs Cape Verde, and 1 goal + 1 assist vs Egypt.
For Egypt, Mostafa Shobeir was the standout despite the defeat. The BUL FC-linked keeper made two penalty saves in the tournament — vs Taremi and vs Messi — becoming only the fourth goalkeeper in World Cup history to save two penalties outside of shootouts in a single edition, joining Tomaszewski, Friedel, and Szczesny.
Messi’s miss also wrote an unwanted record. It was his fourth missed penalty in World Cup history, the most by any player. He is the first player to miss two penalties in a single World Cup tournament excluding shootouts.
Reactions
An emotional Lionel Scaloni could barely speak after the match.
“I can’t talk, I’m sorry. I can’t lift my head. What a group of players, brother,” he said before walking out of his press conference in tears.
Roy Keane summed up Argentina’s mentality: “They are STREET FIGHTERS! They will not give up.” 🇦🇷👊
Enzo Fernandez, scorer of the winner, said: “I just scored the goal of my life. We were on the way out, but we pushed with everything we’ve got. We are a team with heart.”
Lautaro Martinez consoled his captain: “When I saw Leo Messi crying on the field, I told him that I cried too because he deserves it.”
Julian Alvarez added: “We saw Messi very affected by his goal. He continues to prove that he is a great legend.”
The mood in the Egypt camp was one of devastation. Mo Salah said:
“I don’t want to talk about the referee because I’ll get in trouble if I do. It’s sad and frustrating to see all the decisions going against you in a game, especially in a decisive match like this one in the World Cup.”
Mostafa Ziko was even more direct:
“The referee is unfair. God is sufficient for me and the best disposer of affairs. He’s wasting the effort of an entire nation.”
Argentina march on. Egypt exit with pride, pain, and a goalkeeper who became a national hero.