Enzo Fernandez scored in stoppage time to give Argentina an incredible 3-2 win over Egypt and a spot in the World Cup quarterfinals on Tuesday.
The defending champions had trailed 2-0 after goals from Yasser Ibrahim and and Mostafa Zico at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. But Argentina got two late goals in four minutes from Cristian Romero and Lionel Messi to get back in the game.
Messi also missed a chance in the first half when his penalty was saved by Egypt goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir. He also hit the post when the score was 1-
For close to 80 minutes, Argentina’s World Cup was slipping away, inch by inch. Lionel Messi had missed a penalty, Egypt had defended with poise and countered with menace, and the defending champion was two goals down inside a stadium that had spent the whole morning singing its captain’s name.
Then, in the space of a breathless final stretch, the game changed. Cristian Romero pulled one back, Messi restored parity, and deep into stoppage time Enzo Fernandez arrived with the winner as Argentina beat Egypt 3-2, turning a near-certain elimination into one of this World Cup’s wildest escapes.
The stadium had been blue and white long before kick-off. Two hours before the noon start, supporters were already filling the climate-controlled dome, turning it into a shrine of Messi. Egypt, though, was not cowed by the noise or the occasion and Hossam Hassan’s side won the early midfield duels to disrupt Argentina’s rhythm.
Its reward came in the 15th minute when Yasser Ibrahim stole in front of Lisandro Martinez to power a header into the top-right corner, beyond the reach of a rooted Emiliano Martinez.
Argentina had the chance to respond in eight minutes when Nicolas Tagliafico was brought down inside the box by Mohamed Hassan. The stadium rose, expecting the familiar script. Instead, Mostafa Shobeir dived low to his left and pushed Messi’s penalty away.
There was the gasp of disbelief, but not the sound of a crowd turning on its idol. The blue-and-white banks answered with a fresh chant, as if to sing out the hurt of Messi.
After the hydration break, Shobeir again reacted sharply to keep out Alexis Mac Allister’s header and then flung out a strong hand to turn Julian Alvarez’s skidding shot around the post.
In the 58th minute, Hassan glided in from the right to link with Mohamed Salah and release Zico to finish beyond Emiliano, only for VAR to intervene. But the warning was not heeded. Moments later, from an Argentine corner, Salah gathered possession in his own half and burst away, carrying the ball beyond Romero before slipping Hassan free. The Egyptian drifted inside to find the onrushing Zico, who hammered his finish past Emiliano to put Egypt further ahead.
With 10 minutes left, Romero turned his header through Shobeir’s grasp to reduce the deficit. Messi then slalomed past two defenders from the right and almost equalised, only for a desperate clearance to spare Egypt.
