Messi inspires stunning Argentina comeback to eliminate Egypt from World Cup

Argentina staged a remarkable comeback from two goals down to beat Egypt 3-2 at the World Cup on Tuesday, 7 July 2026, reaching the quarter-finals and extending Lionel Messi's international career for at least one more match.

Egypt looked set for a historic upset at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta after goals from Yasser Ibrahim and Mostafa Zico put them 2-0 ahead with just over ten minutes remaining. Argentina then scored three times in the final 11 minutes and stoppage time to complete an unprecedented turnaround.

According to ESPN, it was the first time in World Cup history that a team had won a knockout match in regulation after trailing by two goals in the 75th minute.

Cristian Romero headed in a Messi assist in the 79th minute to begin the fightback. Four minutes later, Messi struck a half-volley that cannoned in off the crossbar, his 21st World Cup goal and a record ninth consecutive World Cup match with a goal. Enzo Fernández then headed home from a Lautaro Martínez cross two minutes into stoppage time to seal the win.

Messi's goal restored his lead in the race for the Golden Boot, taking him to eight goals this tournament, one ahead of Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland.

The result was not without difficulty for Messi. He missed a first-half penalty, saved by Egypt goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir, after Nicolás Tagliafico was fouled inside the box by Haissem Hassan. It was Messi's second penalty miss of the tournament, following a similar failure against Austria in the group stage, making him the first player to miss two penalties at a single World Cup. He also struck the post before Shobeir denied Julián Álvarez from close range.

Egypt took the lead in the 15th minute when Ibrahim rose above Lisandro Martínez to head in Marwan Attia's cross. The Pharaohs, appearing at the round of 16 for the first time in their history, doubled their advantage through Zico in the 67th minute, after an earlier Zico goal had been ruled out following a video assistant referee (VAR) review for a foul in the build-up.

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni made changes to freshen his side, bringing in Tagliafico, Leandro Paredes and Julián Álvarez, but his team started slowly before rallying in the closing stages.

"This is a phenomenal group that never gives up," said Fernández. "Four years have passed since Qatar, and we've come to enjoy another World Cup, and we want to win it again."

Messi described the difficulty of the occasion. "Things got tough at 2-0, so it was incredibly exciting to turn it around once again," he said. "We suffered a lot, but that's the World Cup for you: every match is playing out the same way; everything is so evenly matched."

Egypt coach Hossam Hassan disputed the result afterwards, alleging that refereeing decisions had favoured Argentina. He pointed to Zico's disallowed goal and the absence of a VAR review for an alleged foul by Alexis Mac Allister in the buildup to Fernández's winner.

"We looked better than the reigning champions, better in everything, but the result was influenced by internal factors on the pitch and external factors off it," Hassan said. "Perhaps they wanted to keep the world champion in the competition."

Hassan said he had confronted referee François Letexier after the match, telling him he suspected the official was "carrying a scar or has something to hide." Egypt had objected to Letexier's appointment before the game, citing Argentina's 2022 World Cup final victory over France.

Zico said the team was left to reflect on missed opportunities. "The match was in our hands and slipped away at the last moment," he said. "We were hard done by [the referee] today, and everyone saw that."

Shobeir said he was proud of Egypt's performance despite the defeat. "Some mistakes happened from all of us in the last 10 minutes," he said. "But in the end, we are also playing against the world champions."

Argentina, seeking to become the first team to win consecutive World Cups since Brazil in 1958 and 1962, will play Switzerland in the quarter-finals in Kansas City on Saturday.