Argentina 3-2 Egypt: Holders complete almighty comeback to down defiant Egyptians | OneFootball

Defending champions Argentina completed a thrilling comeback after trailing by two goals to secure a place in the World Cup quarter-finals, handing a resilient Egypt an agonising exit.

Egypt broke the deadlock after 15 minutes when Yasser Ibrahim’s header found the net, their work was almost undone by Lionel Messi shortly after, but he missed his second penalty of the tournament.

Goalkeeping heroics from Mostafa Ahmed Shobeir kept Argentina at bay before the interval and Egypt began to retreat more often to protect their lead. Mostafa Ziko gave Egypt daylight once Haissem Hassan led a pulsating transition, but Argentina rallied to mount a memorable turnaround.

Cristian Romero’s header was followed by a volley from Messi and a last-gasp winner by Enzo Fernandez to cap off a World Cup classic in the 92nd minute. Argentina will face the winner of Switzerland vs Colombia in the quarter-finals.

As it happened

Egypt were not intimidated by their only second-ever round-of-16 tie, and they assuredly retained possession in the opening stages, awaiting the right moment to penetrate defending champions Argentina, who were unable to gain a foothold.

They were duly rewarded when Mohamed Ateya’s inswinging cross was met by centre-back Yasser Ibrahim, who powered his header into the net, capitalising on Lisandro Martinez’s lapse of concentration by playing the goalscorer onside.

This was the first time La Albiceleste had fallen behind at this World Cup, but captain Lionel Messi has usually been a reliable talisman, conjuring composure in front of goal.

Nicolás Tagliafico exploited right-winger Haissem Hassan’s positioning by surging beyond him, and Hassan’s infringement was rightly adjudged to warrant a penalty by the referee without hesitation.

The indomitable Messi scored in a record eight straight World Cup matches prior to proceedings, but one of his flaws has been from the penalty spot. He extended his unwanted record of most penalties missed at World Cups (4).

Squandering the chance to restore parity five minutes after the opener, Messi’s penalty was saved by Mostafa Ahmed Shobeir to his bottom left corner.

Messi’s colleague at Inter Miami, Rodrigo De Paul, sent in a delivery towards Alexis Mac Allister and the Egypt goalkeeper repelled it from close range.

From an audacious distance, Messi curled a free-kick onto the post, hoping to atone for his penalty miss and awaken the subdued supporters in Atlanta, who were witnessing another potential scare in the knockout stages.

Another opportunity went amiss from the edge of the area for the 39-year-old, and Argentina were pushing to find an equaliser before half-time.

Julián Álvarez was expecting the net to ripple after receiving Tagliafico’s cut-back until Ahmed Shobeir’s superb reflex save averted the danger. A worthy contender for save of the tournament.

Plenty to ponder for Lionel Scaloni to help three-time World Cup winners Argentina find a breakthrough against the resistance exhibited by their opponents, buoyed with and without the ball by their shock lead.

Argentina were probing and adding impetus to break down a deeper-sitting Egyptian defence, who were penned back for longer spells in the second half. However, Scaloni’s men were made to pay the ultimate price on transition.

Hassan marauded upfield in a dazzling transition, bypassing several defenders, and he shifted his pass to Mohamed Salah, who stroked a perfectly weighted pass of his own to Mostafa Ziko.

The Egyptian striker lifted a smart finish over Emiliano Martinez and wheeled away in unbridled celebration. A VAR review rescued the holders, though, as a soft tug on Lisandro Martinez’s shirt from Ateya in a previous phase of play was enough to chalk off the goal.

Named after Brazilian icon Zico, he had another chance to apply the finishing touch on another lethal counterattack. Salah offloaded the ball to Hassan, and he breezed past his marker, finding the onrushing Ziko to double the advantage moments before the second hydration break.

Argentina were teetering on the edge of an early World Cup exit, craving a big moment to catalyse a revival.

With 11 minutes remaining, Messi’s cross did supply the key lifeline as Cristian Romero steered his free header home to halve the deficit.

Egypt had managed to concede just a single goal in each of their games during this World Cup campaign, and they had to toil to cling onto a possible victory.

Eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi jinked his way through a sea of defenders down the right and Messi’s moment to salvage the tie seemed looming on his last hurrah.

On the half volley, he fired an effort on target from inside the box, and the goalkeeper could not fashion a strong enough hand to thwart it and the ball crashed in off the crossbar to restore Argentinian hope of a World Cup title defence, a feat only achieved twice by Italy and Brazil.

From off the canvas, Argentina pulled off a remarkable recovery in stoppage time, when Lautaro Martinez picked out Enzo Fernandez, who placed his header into the right corner and prompted delirium.

The Egyptians remonstrated about a possible foul on Salah at the opposite end of the pitch before the turnover, but to no avail, and Argentina finally were able to protect a lead and held firm to clinch a quarter-final spot.