Lionel Messi is 39 years old and still refuses to let Argentina lose. That’s the simplest way to explain how the defending champions clawed their way to Sunday’s World Cup final against Spain after a knockout run that looked dead at least three separate times. They trailed Egypt in the Round of 16. They trailed England in the semifinal. They even needed extra time to shake a Cape Verde team that nobody expected to push them that hard. Somehow it’s still working.
Argentina’s group stage was basically a victory lap. They beat Algeria 3-0, Austria 2-0, and Jordan 3-1. Messi opened with his first World Cup hat trick and finished the group as the tournament’s all-time leading scorer. They cruised through with a plus-seven goal difference and zero drama. That changed pretty quickly once the knockout bracket started.
Cape Verde was the first scare. The World Cup debutants, who have Columbus Crew defender Steven Moreira on their back line, went toe-to-toe with Messi in Miami. They came back twice in extra time before an own goal in the 111th minute finally gave Argentina a 3-2 win. “Every game is going to be extremely difficult,” Messi said afterward. He wasn’t wrong.
Egypt made it harder. They jumped to a 2-0 lead in Atlanta and had Argentina staring at elimination. Then Messi did what he does. He set up Cristian Romero’s header in the 79th minute. He scored the equalizer four minutes later. Enzo Fernandez finished it off in the second minute of stoppage time for a 3-2 win that felt less like a comeback and more like a hostage situation that ended peacefully.
The quarterfinal against Switzerland followed the same script. Alexis Mac Allister scored early. Dan Ndoye equalized in the 67th. Breel Embolo got a second yellow five minutes later, and the Swiss parked the bus hoping for penalties. That plan lasted until the 112th minute when Julian Alvarez ripped a stunning goal from distance. Lautaro Martinez added another and Argentina escaped 3-1 without needing spot kicks.
Then came England in the semis. Anthony Gordon put the Three Lions ahead in the 55th minute and it stayed that way until the 85th. Messi assisted Fernandez again to tie it. Then he hung a perfect cross at the far post for Martinez to head home the winner in the second minute of stoppage time. Argentina won it 2-1 and players collapsed on the field like they’d just survived a car crash.
“We thought what happened against Egypt was the best thing ever,” coach Lionel Scaloni said. “I think this surpassed it. Beyond the quality of the opponent, it’s a semifinal. And the way it happened, I don’t know if this has happened before.”
Now they get Spain for a chance at back-to-back titles and a campaign that nobody will forget even if they tried. Messi has dragged this team through every kind of mess the knockout stage could throw at him. One more win and it’s legend status squared.
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