Egypt’s historic FIFA World Cup run came to a heartbreaking end on Tuesday after defending champions Argentina staged a dramatic second-half comeback to win 3-2 and book their place in the quarter-finals.
The Pharaohs looked set to pull off one of the biggest upsets of the tournament after taking a commanding 2-0 lead through Yasser Ibrahim and Mostafa Zico, leaving Argentina and captain Lionel Messi on the brink of elimination.
Egypt’s disciplined defending frustrated the reigning champions for much of the match, with goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir producing several key saves, including denying Messi from the penalty spot in the first half.
The miss was Messi’s second penalty failure of the tournament.
However, Argentina mounted a late fightback.
Cristian Romero pulled one back before Messi redeemed himself by scoring the equaliser, setting up a frantic finale. With stoppage time looming, Enzo Fernández headed home the winner to complete a remarkable turnaround and send Argentina into the last eight.
The result ended Africa’s hopes of having a representative in the quarter-finals after Egypt had carried the continent’s ambitions into the knockout stages.
Egypt had already made history by reaching the Round of 16 after defeating Australia on penalties, the country’s first-ever World Cup knockout victory, and appeared destined for another famous result before Argentina’s late surge.
For Argentina, the victory keeps alive their bid to successfully defend the World Cup title despite another performance that exposed defensive vulnerabilities, having also survived a difficult Round of 32 encounter against Cape Verde.
Argentina will now face the winner of the Round of 16 clash between Switzerland and Colombia for a place in the semi-finals.
