Argentina snatched victory over Egypt following a comeback and progressed to the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup
The Argentina national team beat Egypt in the round of 16 at the 2026 World Cup. The match at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta ended in a 3–2 victory for Argentina.
Egypt opened the scoring as early as the 15th minute. Yasser Ibrahim headed home a cross from Marwan Attia on the right flank.
In the 21st minute, Argentina were awarded a penalty after Hayssam Hassan fouled Nicolás Tagliafico. However, Lionel Messi was unable to beat goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir. As a result, the Argentine became the first player in World Cup history to miss two penalties in a single tournament.
Before half-time, the reigning world champions created several more dangerous chances. Alexis Mac Allister headed towards goal following a cross from Rodrigo De Paul, but Shobeir saved his team. Later, Messi hit the post from a free-kick, and a close-range shot by Julián Álvarez was also saved by the Egyptian goalkeeper.
At the start of the second half, the Argentines continued to press. In the 58th minute, Zico found the back of the net for the second time, but following a VAR review, the goal was disallowed due to a foul by Marwan Attia during the challenge.
In the 67th minute, Egypt finally doubled their lead. Following a swift counter-attack, Zico finished off a pass from Haytham Hassan with a precise shot to make it 2–0.
Argentina pulled one back in the 79th minute. Cristian Romero scored with a header following a cross from Lionel Messi down the right flank.
This assist was Messi’s ninth at World Cups, allowing him to break Diego Maradona’s record and become the all-time leading assist provider in World Cup history.
In the 84th minute, Messi equalised with a precise shot from inside the penalty area that flew under the crossbar.
This goal was the Argentina captain’s eighth at the 2026 World Cup. He topped the tournament’s scoring charts, ahead of Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland, who have seven goals each.
Enzo Fernández secured victory for Argentina in the second minute of stoppage time, heading home a cross from Lautaro Martínez.
In the World Cup quarter-finals, Argentina will face the winner of the Switzerland v Colombia tie.
In the group stage, Argentina finished top of Group J, beating Algeria 3–0, Austria 2–0 and Jordan 3–1. In the round of 16, Lionel Scaloni’s side beat Cape Verde 3–2 after extra time.
Egypt finished the group stage in second place in Group G. The team drew 1–1 with Belgium and 1–1 with Iran, and beat New Zealand 3–1. In the round of 32, the Egyptians beat Australia on penalties after a 1–1 draw in normal time.
