Tearful Messi inspires Argentina to stunning comeback win over Egypt
Lionel Messi inspired Argentina to a remarkable World Cup fightback as they came from two goals down to beat Egypt 3-2 in a dramatic last-16 game on Tuesday.
The tournament holders were trailing 2-0 and just 11 minutes away from a shock defeat before pulling off a sensational late revival. The 39-year-old Messi orchestrated the comeback, increasing his record World Cup goal haul to 21 and sobbing tears of relief at the final whistle.
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Yasser Ibrahim opened the scoring for an attacking Egypt after 15 minutes, rising high to head home a long cross floated in by Marwan Attia. Messi squandered an early penalty in the 19th minute, hit weakly with his left foot and easily stopped by the diving Egyptian goalkeeper Mostafa Shoubir.
With this miss, Messi became the first player to fail to convert two penalties at a World Cup, following a previous miss against Austria in the group phase. Egypt doubled their lead in the 67th minute when Mostafa Zico stormed in to finish a cutback pass from Haissem Hassan following a quick counter-attack sparked by Mohamed Salah.
Cristian Romero started Argentina's dramatic revival in the 79th minute, heading home a well-placed cross provided by captain Messi. Messi crashed home the crucial equalizer just four minutes later, after vital touches from substitutes Lautaro Martinez and Gonzalo Montiel kept the ball away from Egyptian defenders. Enzo Fernandez cushioned a back-post header past Shoubir two minutes into stoppage time to seal the victory from a counter-attack cross by Lautaro Martinez.
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The dramatic win books Argentina a spot in the quarter-finals against either Colombia or Switzerland in Kansas City on Saturday.
