Reigning champions Argentina survived a huge scare from World Cup debutants Cape Verde, edging them 3-2 on Friday to book a place in the Round of 16.
Cape Verde, playing in their first-ever World Cup, twice fought back from behind in a thrilling contest in front of 64,478 fans at a hot and humid Miami Stadium.
The match was finally decided six minutes into the second period of extra time when Lionel Messi’s corner struck Cape Verde defender Diney Borges after Cristian Romero’s header, resulting in an own goal. With the win, Argentina have set up a Round of 16 clash against Egypt in Atlanta next Tuesday.
Messi had opened the scoring in the 29th minute with his seventh goal of the tournament, but Deroy Duarte equalised just before the hour mark.
Argentina looked to have won it early in extra time when Lisandro Martinez smashed a superb shot into the roof of the net. However, Cape Verde refused to give up, with left-back Sidny Lopes Cabral curling a brilliant strike into the top corner to make it 2-2 once again.
Even after the own goal, Cape Verde almost forced another equaliser, but Emiliano Martinez produced an excellent save to deny Lopes Cabral’s free-kick in the closing minutes.
“It was an incredibly difficult match. The positive is that this team never gives up,” Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said after his 100th game in charge.
“I also want to congratulate Cape Verde. They showed they are a very good team. People say there are no easy matches at the World Cup, and today proved that.”
Although they were knocked out, Cape Verde earned plenty of praise for another fearless performance against the three-time world champions.
“I’m proud of my players and everything they’ve achieved,” coach Bubista said. “We should all be proud of what we’ve done for our country. To play like this against the world champions and come back twice is something special.”
Ranked 67th in the world before the tournament, Cape Verde were the only one of the four World Cup debutants to reach the knockout stage. They had already impressed with group-stage draws against Spain, Uruguay and Saudi Arabia, and once again showed remarkable resilience and quality.
Argentina struggled to break down Cape Verde’s organised defence, with defender Kevin Pina standing out for much of the match.
The breakthrough came in the 29th minute when Lisandro Martinez floated a long pass over the defence for Messi. The veteran forward controlled it brilliantly with the outside of his left foot before firing into the roof of the net for his 20th World Cup goal across six tournaments.
Cape Verde responded well after the break. Duarte first tested Emiliano Martinez with a powerful effort before finding the equaliser just before the hour mark. Captain Ryan Mendes raced down the right and picked out Duarte, who controlled the ball before firing past the Argentine goalkeeper.
Messi nearly restored Argentina’s lead moments later, but Vozinha made an important save. The Cape Verde goalkeeper also tipped away one of Messi’s trademark free-kicks, while defender Pico Lopes produced a crucial block to stop Enzo Fernandez from scoring.
Cape Verde held firm to force extra time and came within minutes of pulling off one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history.
Although their dream run ended, they left the tournament with their heads held high after announcing themselves on football’s biggest stage.
