Argentina pulled off a sensational comeback to defeat Egypt 3-2 in a thrilling FIFA World Cup Round of 16 clash, overturning a two-goal deficit to keep their title defence alive.
Egypt opened the scoring in the 15th minute as Hany earned a corner on the right. The set piece was sent back to Attia, whose cross located Ibrahim, who leaped above Lisandro Martinez to send a powerful header into the top corner, leaving goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez frozen in place.
Argentina was given a quick chance to equalize when Tagliafico was fouled in the penalty box by Hassan.
Nevertheless, Lionel Messi was unable to score from the penalty in the 21st minute as goalkeeper Shobeir anticipated correctly and deflected the inadequately hit attempt.
The miss created unwanted history for Messi, who became the first player to miss two penalties in a single FIFA World Cup, having also been unable to score from the spot in Argentina’s group-stage win over Austria.
Scaloni’s team controlled the ball for the rest of the first half but failed to score. Messi hit the post’s outer edge with a free-kick, Julian Alvarez was thwarted by an excellent Shobeir stop, and the Egyptian defense remained solid to maintain its lead at halftime.
In the 67th minute, Zico extended Egypt’s lead following a powerful counterattack. Mohamed Salah initiated the counterattack before passing to Hassan, whose low cross was finished from close range by Zico, igniting celebrations among Egyptian fans.
With their title defense in jeopardy, Argentina initiated a late comeback.
Cristian Romero sparked hope for the South Americans in the 79th minute by headbutting Messi’s corner, even though Shobeir managed to touch the ball.
Four minutes later, Messi redeemed himself for the penalty he had previously missed. Lautaro Martinez directed the ball into his route after Alvarez softened it, and the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner fired a powerful shot past Shobeir to equalize at 2-2.
The remarkable comeback was finalized during stoppage time. Following Egypt’s inability to take advantage of a promising counterattack, Argentina surged ahead, and Fernandez connected with a cross via a strong header that soared into the top corner in the 92nd minute, securing an impressive 3-2 win.
Egypt objected just before the decisive goal, arguing that Alexis Mac Allister had fouled Fathy in the lead-up, yet play continued and the goal was upheld.
The decision provoked furious responses from the Egyptian bench, resulting in goalkeeper Shobeir receiving a yellow card for dissent and a coaching staff member being dismissed.
Argentina withstood intense pressure in 11 minutes of stoppage time to achieve the comeback and earn their spot in the quarterfinals.
