Messi breaks more records in Argentina's dramatic win

Until the 78th minute, Egypt looked firmly in control, holding a 2-0 lead over Argentina and seemingly cruising into the FIFA World Cup quarterfinals at the Atlanta Stadium on Tuesday.

But from the brink of elimination, Argentina produced one of the greatest comebacks in World Cup history, scoring three goals in just 13 minutes to stun the Pharaohs 3-2 in a dramatic Round of 16 clash.

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Cristian Romero sparked the revival with a header from Lionel Messi's cross in the 79th minute. Messi, who earlier missed a penalty in the first half, then brought Argentina level four minutes later, volleying home after the ball rebounded off the crossbar.

The drama, however, was far from over. Deep into stoppage time, Enzo Fernandez rose highest to power home a towering header in the third minute of added time, sealing a remarkable victory and sending the defending champions into the quarterfinals.

Here are some key records from Argentina's unforgettable comeback:

# This is the first time in 14 attempts where Argentina won a game in a World Cup after going 2-0 down in a match.

# Argentina captain Lionel Messi equalled the record for the most FIFA World Cup knockout appearances (14) of Germany’s Miroslav Klose during Argentina's Round of 16 victory over Egypt.

# Messi registered his ninth World Cup assist, surpassing Diego Maradona's previous record of eight to become the tournament's all-time leading assist provider.

# Messi became the first player in FIFA World Cup history to miss two penalties in a single edition of the tournament.

# With four missed penalties, Messi extended his own record for the most penalty misses in FIFA World Cup history.

# Messi also extended his own record by scoring in nine consecutive FIFA World Cup matches for Argentina—the longest such streak in the tournament's history.

# Messi claimed his record-extending 15th FIFA World Cup Man of the Match award.

# Argentina made FIFA World Cup history by becoming the first team to overturn a two-goal deficit after the 78th minute of a knockout match and still win in regulation time, without requiring extra time.

# Messi scored his eighth goal at the 2026 World Cup for Argentina he drew level with another Argentine legend Guillermo Stabile for the most goals scored by an Argentine at a single World Cup. Stabile accomplished the feat at the 1930 World Cup. Although there were fewer total games played at that tournament, Messi and Stabile both reached the mark in five games.