Amir Yaseen

Srinagar, July 8

For 78 minutes, the reigning world champions looked finished.

By the 92nd minute, they were celebrating one of the greatest escapes in FIFA World Cup history.

And by the final whistle, the football world was arguing less about Argentina’s remarkable comeback than about whether Egypt had been denied one of the greatest upsets the tournament has ever seen.

Lionel Messi inspired a breathtaking late rally as Argentina overturned a two-goal deficit to beat Egypt 3-2 in Tuesday’s Round of 16 clash at Atlanta Stadium, scoring three times in the final 13 minutes to keep their title defence alive.

Cristian Romero ignited the revival in the 79th minute, Messi equalised five minutes later, and Enzo Fernández completed the turnaround in stoppage time with the 3,000th goal in FIFA World Cup history.

Until then, everything had belonged to Egypt.

Yasser Ibrahim stunned the holders with an early header before goalkeeper Mostafa Shoubeir produced the performance of his life, denying Messi from the penalty spot and frustrating Alexis Mac Allister and Julián Álvarez with a string of outstanding saves.

Mostafa Ziko then doubled Egypt’s lead after a lightning counterattack orchestrated by Mohamed Salah and Haissem Hassan, seemingly putting the Pharaohs on course for one of the competition’s biggest-ever knockout victories.

But the match turned on a series of controversial officiating decisions that have overshadowed Argentina’s comeback.

Egypt had effectively sealed the contest just before the hour when Ziko found the net after another flowing move involving Salah.

Following a lengthy VAR review, however, referee François Letexier disallowed the goal for a foul earlier in the build-up, a decision Egyptian players and coaches fiercely disputed.

The controversy deepened moments before Argentina’s stoppage-time winner.

Egypt appealed passionately for a penalty after Hamdy Fathy – and in other reports, Mohamed Salah – appeared to be fouled inside the area during an attacking move.

Play continued without a VAR intervention.

Seconds later, Argentina broke forward, and Fernández headed home the decisive goal, sparking furious protests from the Egyptian bench.

The emotional aftermath was as dramatic as the match itself.

Head coach Hossam Hassan confronted officials after the final whistle and later accused the referee of “unfair” officiating, claiming Egypt had “suffered injustice.”

He went even further by suggesting the tournament appeared to be “directed towards Argentina” and questioned the fairness of the decisions that defined the contest.

Across football media and social platforms, debate erupted over the consistency of VAR.

Analysts and commentators questioned why Egypt’s disallowed goal received extensive review while the late penalty appeals were not examined in the same manner.

The incident quickly became one of the tournament’s defining talking points.

That distinction matters.

Many fans, pundits, and members of the Egyptian camp argued that Egypt had been “robbed,” and these are not just opinions; they are facts.

The confirmed facts are that Egypt had a goal overturned after VAR and had at least one major late penalty appeal rejected.

Lost amid the controversy was an extraordinary football performance.

Messi, whose earlier penalty had been brilliantly saved by Shoubeir, redeemed himself with a trademark finish before celebrating Fernández’s winner that preserved Argentina’s bid for consecutive World Cup titles.

Fernández, meanwhile, etched his name into tournament history by scoring the landmark 3000th World Cup goal.

Argentina now march into the quarter-finals, where they will face Switzerland after the Europeans advanced from their Round-of-16 tie.

Egypt, meanwhile, leave Atlanta with widespread admiration for their performance – but also with a lingering sense that history slipped away amid decisions that will be debated long after the final whistle.

Match information, quotes, and photos courtesy of FIFA.com