Argentina won today’s game, but only after being dragged to the edge. The reigning world champion beat Cabo Verde 3-2 in extra time in the Mundial’s 16vos de final, with Cristian Romero heading in the winner after a deflection by Diney Borges.
That answer is why so many people are searching the result now. Lionel Messi scored in the first half, Lisandro Martínez added another in extra time, and Argentina finally escaped a match that looked close to turning into an embarrassing exit for the favorite. Messi has now scored in all four matches he has played in the tournament and lifted his World Cup total to 20 goals.
The match was played in Miami Gardens, Florida, in heavy conditions, with temperatures at 32 degrees Celsius and the air sticky enough to make every run look harder than the last. Argentina now moves into the octavos de final and will face Egypt in Atlanta on 7 July, while Cabo Verde leaves after a run that had already made history by getting through the group stage unbeaten.
For Lionel Scaloni, the night reached a small milestone as well: it was his 100th match in charge of Argentina. Afterward, he pointed to the basic truth that the scoreboard had just underlined. “Cuando uno dice que no hay partidos fáciles en el Mundial, es cierto,” he said. The result also extended Argentina’s unbeaten streak in knockout matches that began after the loss to Brazil in the 2019 Copa América semifinal.
The twist was how far Cabo Verde pushed the game. Deroy Duarte made it level in the 59th minute, Sidny Lopes Cabral then put the underdog in front with a right-footed strike from more than 23 meters into the top corner in the first part of extra time, and Argentina still had to recover again. Messi’s team did recover, but only just, and that is what gives the result its weight: a tight escape, not a comfortable advance.
Messi put the feeling into one line after the final whistle. “Esta selección siempre compite y va a hacerlo hasta el final,” he said. That was the story of the night in Miami Gardens, too. Argentina found a way, and Egypt is next.
