Messi Record Lifts Argentina Past Cape Verde 3-2 in ET
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- Argentina survived an almighty scare, beating World Cup debutants Cape Verde 3-2 in extra time with Cristian Romero's 111th-minute header deflecting off Diney Borges to seal the round-of-16 victory in Miami Gardens.
- Lionel Messi opened the scoring in the 29th minute, his seventh goal of the tournament, extending his all-time men's World Cup scoring record to 20 and giving him goals in eight consecutive World Cup matches.
- Cape Verde, ranked No. 67 by FIFA, equalized twice — Deroy Duarte in the second half and Sidny Cabral's curling strike into the top corner in extra time — with goalkeeper Vozinha making eight saves before the eventual defeat.
- Lisandro Martínez delivered the assist for Messi's opener and scored the 2-1 goal in extra time, bouncing back from an injury-plagued Manchester United season to provide key contributions in both boxes.
- Argentina showed real defensive vulnerability ahead of their next fixture, with Enzo Fernández caught ball-watching on Duarte's simple equalizer — one of several lapses manager Lionel Scaloni must fix quickly.
- Cape Verde's near-upset would have been the largest World Cup knockout upset by FIFA ranking since at least 1994; the record still stands as No. 70-ranked Russia eliminating No. 10 Spain on penalties in 2018.
- Miami Stadium served as a home-from-home for Argentina, draped in sky blue and white flags, after the team won the 2024 Copa America final against Colombia on the same field.
Why it matters: Argentina's defensive lapses — two equalizers including a simple two-pass goal with a ball-watching midfielder — raise alarms ahead of a round-of-16 meeting with Egypt in Atlanta, where Scaloni admitted there's 'many' things to correct. Cape Verde, ranked 67th, came within minutes of the biggest knockout upset by FIFA ranking since at least 1994, underscoring how thin the margin was between world champions and an unthinkable exit.
