Messi Argentina comeback created another moment of interest as the world champions went 2-1 up to beat England in the FIFA World Cup semi-final in Atlanta. Lionel Messi, 39, was yet again the difference in the late game and he led both goals that put Argentina over the top.
Messi turned the tables in the last moments of the game as Argentina faded to a low. He set up Enzo Fernandez for the equaliser with a spot-on pass and then completed the job with a level cross to Lautaro Martinez for a winner. The run was a resurgence of Argentina’s late-game strength that has become a trademark of the country’s tourneys.
The semi-final result is an extension of the “come back up” pattern. Argentina needed overtime to beat Cape Verde in the round of 32 and Switzerland in the quarter-finals. They also knocked out 2–0 Egypt in the Round of 16, finishing the game with a stoppage-time goal. On the structural level, this is a team built to last longer, to be psychologically strong in critical moments and not the early game.
But the one thing Messi, in his sixth World Cup, said was that the one thing that made him different was the self-belief. “This team doesn’t shock me… as a team it’s an added driving factor,” he said. In the end, Argentina’s success, even with player fatigue and players getting older, is in the intensity and leadership of the team.
The win puts FC Barcelona up against Spain in New Jersey, offering an exciting matchup between two of football’s best systems. Argentina comes into this competition with a good head start but has built up physical fatigue, which may impact on the match.
Messi says he’s so intent on the tournament he isn’t thinking about retirement, thus maintaining the leadership continuity at the top. Now Argentina are one game away from defending the title in the world.
