For 78 minutes at Atlanta Stadium, Argentina were staring at one of the biggest upsets in the FIFA World Cup. Lionel Messi had missed a penalty, Egypt were two goals ahead and the defending champions were on the brink of elimination.
Then came a remarkable turnaround.
Cristian Romero sparked the fightback, Messi restored parity five minutes later and Enzo Fernández completed an astonishing 3-2 victory deep into stoppage time, sending Argentina into the quarter-finals after a contest that swung wildly from one end to the other.
Egypt arrived with a clear plan and executed it brilliantly in the opening half. After soaking up early Argentine pressure, they struck first in the 15th minute. A cleverly worked short corner found Marwan Attia, whose inviting delivery was met by Yasser Ibrahim. The centre-back rose above Lisandro Martínez to power a header beyond Emiliano Martínez to hand Egypt a 1-0 lead.
Argentina had an immediate opportunity to respond when Nicolás Tagliafico was brought down inside the box. Messi stepped up, but Mostafa Shobeir guessed correctly and pushed away the penalty. It was the second spot-kick Messi had failed to convert in the ongoing tournament and the fourth penalty miss of his World Cup career.
Shobeir continued to frustrate Argentina before the break, producing outstanding saves to deny Alexis Mac Allister and Julián Álvarez, while Messi also struck the outside of the post with a trademark free-kick.
Lionel Scaloni introduced fresh legs after the interval, but Egypt continued to threaten on the counter. Zico thought he had doubled the lead shortly before the hour after a blistering counter attack, only for the VAR to rule it out due to a foul in the build-up.
The reprieve lasted only a few minutes.
In the 67th minute, Mohamed Salah launched another rapid counterattack before Hassan picked out Zico, who finished confidently to make it 2-0. Suddenly, Argentina faced the prospect of becoming the first defending champions since Italy in 1950 to be eliminated before the quarter-finals.
Scaloni responded by throwing on Lautaro Martínez and Nicolás González, and the momentum finally shifted.
Romero gave Argentina hope in the 79th minute, powering home Messi’s pinpoint delivery from close range. Five minutes later, Messi made amends for his earlier penalty miss. Lautaro Martínez’s acrobatic effort fell kindly for Gonzalo Montiel, whose lay-off found the Argentine number 10 inside the area. Messi’s powerful finish squeezed through Shobeir’s outstretched hand to level the contest at 2-2.
With seven minutes of added time signalled, Egypt nearly restored their advantage before Leandro Paredes produced a crucial recovery tackle to halt a dangerous counterattack.
Moments later came the decisive blow.
Lautaro Martínez burst down the right and delivered a superb cross into the penalty area, where Enzo Fernández timed his run perfectly to head past Shobeir in the 92nd minute.
Argentina had completed one of the greatest escapes of the tournament.
For Egypt, whose disciplined display had threatened to produce a famous victory, the ending was devastating. For Messi and Argentina, it was another reminder that champions rarely surrender quietly. Their title defence lives on, but only after surviving one of the toughest examinations of the tournament so far. Messi’s tears of joy after the full-time whistle was a testament to the fight Egypt put on in what was a scintillating contest between the two sides.
For more updates on the FIFA World Cup, follow RevSportz
The post Messi inspires stunning Argentina comeback as Enzo’s stoppage-time winner breaks Egyptian hearts appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.
