Argentina vs England
Photography by: Peter Bonilla and Gabriel Bayona Sapag
On Wednesday night in Atlanta, Enzo Fernández and substitute Lautaro Martínez scored for Argentina in the last ten minutes of the game to stun England 2-1 and set up a showdown against Spain in the World Cup Final. It was yet another dramatic comeback by La Albiceleste, who have now become masters of winning games just when it seems like they’ll surely be bounced from the tournament.
From the perspective of the Three Lions, this one was a painful one. For 85 minutes, England looked poised to exorcise decades of World Cup heartbreak against Argentina. Instead, they crashed out of the tournament with no one to blame but themselves.
The semifinal was tense from the opening whistle. Neither side managed a shot on target in a bruising first half dominated by defensive discipline and midfield battles, with England frustrating Messi for long stretches and limiting Argentina's usually fluid attack.
The breakthrough finally arrived 10 minutes after halftime. Morgan Rogers burst down the right and delivered a driven cross that Anthony Gordon met at the back post, steering England into a 1-0 lead and igniting hopes of the nation's first World Cup final appearance since 1966.
But just as it happened in 2018 and 2021 (Euros), protecting a narrow advantage proved to be England's undoing.
As Argentina poured forward, Thomas Tuchel responded by reinforcing his defense, switching to a back five as England retreated deeper and deeper into its own half. The defending champions responded with relentless pressure, forcing Jordan Pickford to produce several outstanding saves. Even the woodwork had to intervene, with Alexis Mac Allister rattling the post with a header. It was a brutal onslaught with wave after wave of attacks pinning England inside its own penalty area. Eventually, the resistance that had proven so resilient at the Azteca a few days back, broke.
In the 85th minute, Messi drifted into space before finding Fernández outside the area. The Chelsea midfielder unleashed a superb strike beyond Pickford to level the match and shift all of the momentum toward Argentina.
England barely had time to regroup before the decisive blow arrived two minutes into stoppage time. This time, Messi recycled another Argentine attack before delivering a perfectly weighted cross into the six-yard box. Martínez, who came off the bench earlier in the second half, rose above the slew of British defenders in the box to power home the winner and spark wild celebrations among Argentina's supporters.
"I dreamed it," Martínez said afterward. "I told Alexis Mac Allister I was going to come on and win it. This team keeps showing what it's made of,” he concluded.
For Messi, who was named Player of the Match, the victory moves him one step closer to an extraordinary ending to his World Cup career. At 39 years old, the Argentine captain became the oldest outfield player ever to appear in a World Cup semifinal and produced two decisive assists when his country needed them most. It was another feather in his cap, producing what will surely be one of the most memorable victories in Argentine history.
England, meanwhile, was left to reflect on another painful collapse after leading deep into a major knockout match. Harry Kane admitted the Three Lions became too passive after taking the lead, while Tuchel acknowledged his side struggled to withstand Argentina's sustained pressure.
Argentina now stands just one victory away from becoming the first nation to successfully defend the World Cup since Brazil in 1962. Standing in its way is European champion Spain in a blockbuster final this Sunday.
