Lionel Messi has praised the fighting spirit of his Argentina squad after another remarkable World Cup comeback, saying the team’s refusal to give up has become the defining trait of their tournament.
“I just feel happiness for qualifying. We qualified. It was very difficult, especially when we were 2-0 down, and it was very exciting to come back again, suffer again, but this is the World Cup and all the matches have been very similar. They’re evenly matched, so I’m really happy,” Messi told reporters after the 3-2 win over Egypt in Atlanta on 7 July.
He later added: “We are bouncing back again. We felt relieved. It wasn’t easy to come back from 2-0 down, but this group never gives up, always fights to the end and we’re very lucky to see the goals and turn the game around. It’s crazy what this group did in these knockout rounds. I’m extremely happy for the people who can enjoy our celebrations.”
Argentina had trailed 2-0 after goals from Yasser Ibrahim and Mostafa Ziko either side of Messi seeing a first half penalty saved by goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir, who also denied Alexis Mac Allister and Julian Alvarez in a string of fine stops. Cristian Romero halved the deficit before Messi’s thundering half volley levelled the scores, and Enzo Fernandez completed the turnaround with a header two minutes into stoppage time. Head coach Lionel Scaloni was left in tears afterwards, telling Telemundo: “I can’t lift my gaze, I’m sorry, I’m very emotional. What a group of players, brother.”
Fernandez, whose winner sent Argentina into the quarter finals, echoed his captain’s sentiment in equally emotional scenes. “A lot of thoughts, but this group showed the courage and the bravery that it did. Watching Leo, who is our greatest example, how he never gives up, always goes forward, and is an example for us. He always shows, in adversity, that it can be done, and in the end today it’s a huge reward for everyone. We’re going to keep fighting until the very end,” Fernandez said. In a detail that has since circulated widely, it is the same Enzo Fernandez who, as a boy, once wrote Messi a letter during one of his earlier international retirements, pleading with him to stay.
Messi’s equaliser made him the first player in World Cup history to score in six consecutive knockout stage matches, taking his all time tally to 21 goals and extending his tournament record to eight, the most by any player through a team’s opening five games of a single edition since Gerd Muller’s 10 for West Germany in 1970. He has now scored more goals across the World Cup and Copa America combined (35) than Diego Maradona managed for Argentina across all competitions and friendlies (34), and on the day also equalled Miroslav Klose’s record of 14 World Cup knockout appearances.
According to Opta’s win probability data, Argentina had just a 0.6 per cent chance of winning at the moment Romero’s goal made it 2-1, having trailed as late as the 78th minute, the latest any side has come back from two goals down to win a World Cup match without extra time. Fernandez’s header was also the 3,000th goal scored in World Cup history.
The comeback nonetheless papers over real concerns for Scaloni, with Argentina’s defence exposed for long stretches and goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez still to fully recover his old authority commanding crosses since a finger injury. The fighting spirit, though, echoes the run to glory in Qatar four years ago, a campaign built on the same emotional intensity and driven by the shared desire to deliver for Messi. Fifteen of the current squad have kept the same jersey numbers they wore in 2022. Argentina will face either Colombia or Switzerland in the quarter finals.
