Messi Scored Twice, Missed a Penalty, and Still Saved Argentina From Humiliation

How Bad Did It Look? Pretty Bad.

Egypt came out swinging. Yasser Ibrahim put a header past the Argentine keeper in the 15th minute, and after that Egypt's defense essentially turned into a brick wall with cleats. Argentina, the team built around the greatest player alive, could not find a way through.

Then it got worse. Messi stepped up to take a penalty kick and missed it. Argentina's captain, eight goals into this tournament, botched the one moment that looked like a lifeline. Egypt, sensing blood, added a second goal in the 67th minute through Mostafa Ziko, an earlier Egyptian goal having already been wiped out by video review. The score was 2-0. The knockout round was slipping away.

For context: Argentina has won back-to-back World Cups. They are the number one ranked team in the world. And they were being outplayed, outmuscled, and out-thought by an Egyptian squad that had never before reached the Round of 16 in World Cup history. Sports are genuinely insane.

Thirteen Minutes That Will Be Replayed Forever

Whatever was said in the Argentine huddle as the clock ticked past the 75-minute mark, it worked. In the 79th minute, Messi whipped a cross into the Egyptian box and Cristian Romero met it with his head. Goal. Suddenly, impossibly, this was a game again.

Four minutes later, Messi stopped being subtle about it. He powered a shot straight past the Egyptian keeper to level the match at 2-2. That was his eighth goal of this tournament, the most of any player, according to NPR. The man had missed a penalty, watched his team crater, and then personally dragged them back from the edge.

Stoppage time. Another header. This one from Enzo Fernandez. Argentina 3, Egypt 2. The comeback was complete. Several Argentine players, Messi included, were crying on the pitch afterward. Which, honestly, seems like a reasonable response to what just happened.

Egypt Did Not Take the Loss Quietly

Egypt coach Hossam Hassan walked into the post-match press conference and made very clear he was not interested in losing gracefully. As NPR reports, Hassan told reporters: "I am not convinced. I am not convinced with this outcome. I'm not convinced with the way things unfolded during this match. We have been treated unfairly today. We have suffered injustice."

His complaints were directed at French referee Francois Letexier and the officiating in general. Whether those complaints have merit is a separate conversation, but the broader point Hassan made is harder to dismiss. "We would have deserved to earn this win, but we are leaving with honor, with pride, regardless of this defeat," he said. He's not wrong about that part. Egypt controlled this match for the better part of 78 minutes. The scoreline at the final whistle does not capture what Egypt actually did out there.

For the Egyptian squad, just reaching the Round of 16 was a historic first. Getting within 11 minutes of knocking out the defending champions? That is a result worth acknowledging, bad referee feelings and all.

Africa Is Running This World Cup and People Need to Pay Attention

Here is the larger story that keeps getting buried under coverage of Messi miracles. African teams are tearing this tournament apart. Morocco has not lost a single game. Cape Verde, qualifying for the World Cup for the first time in their history, held Spain, Uruguay, and Saudi Arabia to a combined frustration. Argentina barely escaped Cape Verde earlier in this tournament in what NPR describes as a nail-biter.

Egypt, now eliminated, played the best team in the world to within a whisker of one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history. African soccer is not a curiosity or a feel-good subplot. It is a dominant force at this World Cup, and the bracket is going to keep making that point whether or not the cameras linger long enough to acknowledge it.

Argentina, meanwhile, moves on to the quarterfinals and a Saturday match against Switzerland. Good luck to Switzerland. They are going to need it.

What Messi Said After

Messi, still visibly emotional after the final whistle, spoke to reporters with the exhausted bluntness of someone who has been doing this long enough to know how close it got. "This is the World Cup for you," he said, per NPR. "It wasn't easy to come back from two goals down. But as I always say, this group never gives up. We always try to fight until the end."

Eight goals. A missed penalty. Tears on the pitch in Atlanta. Whatever "the end" looks like for Messi at this stage of his career, it does not appear to be coming quietly.