Kansas City (United States), 12 July (UNI) In the 2026 FIFA World Cup, for the first time, Lionel Messi failed to score a goal; however, thanks to the goals scored by Julian Alvarez and Lautaro Martinez in extra time, defending champion Argentina defeated Switzerland 3-1 to secure a spot in the semi-finals, where they will face England on 15 July.
Messi, although unable to score, was the foundation of most of Argentina's attacks. Swiss players kept a close eye on him throughout the match, while at the end of extra time, Granit Xhaka thwarted his dangerous attempt, depriving him of a goal.
Argentina took the lead in the 10th minute with a goal from Alexis Mac Allister, but Deni Ndoye equalized the score 1-1 in the 67th minute. Five minutes later, Switzerland suffered a major setback when Breel Embolo was sent off the field for receiving a second yellow card, forcing the team to play with ten players.
Despite being outnumbered, Switzerland maintained a solid defense, and goalkeeper Gregor Kobel made several spectacular saves, which prevented Argentina from scoring a decisive goal in regular time, and the match went into extra time.
When the match seemed to be heading towards a penalty shootout, substitute Julian Alvarez scored a beautiful goal in the 112th minute, giving Argentina the lead once again.
Switzerland made a strong effort to equalize in the final moments, but in the stoppage time of extra time, Argentina sealed their victory with a counterattack. Alvarez stole the ball from Xhaka, Thiago Almada's shot was blocked by Kobel, but on the rebound, Lautaro Martinez scored in the 121st minute, making the score 3-1.
In the final moments, Messi came close to scoring again, but Xhaka thwarted his attempt, saving Switzerland from further damage.
With this victory, Argentina maintained their unbeaten streak in the World Cup since their opening loss to Saudi Arabia in the 2022 World Cup and kept their title defense hopes alive. They will now face England in the semi-finals.