Argentina’s 3-2 stunner over Egypt Tuesday was the wildest game of a World Cup that’s been filled with thrillers.
And the comeback from a 2-0 deficit late in the second half was the first of its kind.
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Per Greg Harvey of OptaStats, no team in World Cup history has rallied from a two-goal deficit in the 75th minute or later to secure a win in regulation.
That stat alone is remarkable, regardless of who was on the field. But the fact that it was Argentina and Lionel Messi that mounted the comeback makes it that much more sensational.
The win ensured that Argentina would not fall in one of the great upsets in World Cup history. It kept the reigning champs’ hopes alive of securing a second consecutive World Cup title. And it ensured that 39-year-old Messi would play in at least one more World Cup game.
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All of those factors were at risk in the second half after Egypt had secured a stunning 2-0 lead thanks to a Mostafa Zico goal in the 67th minute.
That goal hammered home the reality that viewers might be watching the final minutes of Messi’s World Cup career.
But Argentina was not willing to let this ride end.
In the 79th minute, Messi set up Cristian Romero for a header to cut Egypt’s lead in half and keep hope alive of an Argentina rally.
Then, in the 83rd minute, Messi did it himself.
Gonzalo Montiel secured a chaotic cross in the box and delivered it to a charging Messi. Messi responded with a a strike off his left foot that bounced off of goaltender Mostafa Shoubir’s hands to the top of the net.
A comeback that seemed impossible just five minutes earlier now seemed likely. And in the second minute of stoppage time, Enzo Fernández ensured that it was inevitable.
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Fernández took a cross in transition from Lautaro Martínez and headed it into the back of the net to secure the 3-2 lead for Argentina.
From there, Egypt was out of answers, and the comeback was complete. The 3-2 score stood as the final, and Argentina advanced to a quarterfinal matchup against the winner of Tuesday’s game between Colombia and Switzerland.
When it was done, Messi was given a hero’s celebration by his teammates with arguably the greatest comeback in World Cup history secured.
