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{“skip”: false, “title”: “Argentina stun Egypt with late comeback to reach World Cup quarter-finals”, “content”: “
Argentina have completed a stunning comeback to defeat Egypt at Atlanta Stadium, overturning a 2-0 deficit in the closing stages to advance to the quarter-finals of the World Cup. The reigning world champions looked dead and buried as Egypt threatened to reach the last eight for the first time in their history.
Cristian Romero gave Argentina hope in the 79th minute, pulling one back to set nerves jangling among the Egyptian squad. Captain Lionel Messi then levelled at 2-2 just four minutes later, and Enzo Fernandez completed the turnaround with a header in the second minute of stoppage time to send Argentina through in extraordinary fashion.
The match had everything, according to former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson, who was in the ground working for BBC Radio 5 Live — a penalty save, a disallowed goal, a red card and a thrilling comeback. Egypt’s players were also furious at a perceived foul on Mohamed Salah in Argentina’s penalty area in the moments before the winning goal, with French referee Francois Letexier waving play on before Enzo Fernandez struck.
Egyptian football expert Ahmad Yousef, speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, said there was clear frustration over the VAR call. “There is so much inconsistency at the moment with VAR and decisions and how far you go back to pull a decision,” he said. “The foul was so minimal so I completely understand why the Egyptian coaching staff and squad are so disappointed.”
When Letexier blew the final whistle, many Egypt players slumped to the floor in disbelief. Salah swapped shirts with former Liverpool team-mate Alexis MacAllister before leaving the pitch with his head bowed, as other players stood shaking their heads. On the eve of the tournament, Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan had spoken of his desire for his side to “appear in a better way at the World Cup” — but it was not to be.
“, “meta_description”: “Argentina overturn a 2-0 deficit against Egypt in stoppage time to reach the World Cup quarter-finals in a remarkable comeback at Atlanta Stadium.”, “category”: “World Cup 2026”, “focus_keyphrase”: “Argentina Egypt World Cup comeback”, “tags”: [“Argentina”, “Egypt”, “Lionel Messi”, “Enzo Fernandez”, “World Cup”]}
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Image credit: BBC Sport / BBC Sport
