Argentina captain Lionel Messi has revealed that the tears he shed after his side’s dramatic 3-2 comeback victory over Egypt at the 2026 FIFA World Cup were driven by guilt over his missed penalty rather than simply the joy of reaching the quarter-finals.
The defending champions fought back from two goals down in Atlanta to keep their title defence alive and book a last-eight clash with Switzerland.
Speaking after the thrilling encounter, Messi admitted his first-half penalty miss weighed heavily on him throughout the match.
The Argentine skipper said:
“I cried because I felt that I let my teammates down, because of the penalty I missed… and the way I took it.”
Despite the disappointment, Messi said he was grateful that the team eventually turned the game around.
“But thankfully once again, God had something special for me in the end. I’m very happy.”
Messi praised his teammates’ fighting spirit, insisting they never accepted the possibility of elimination.
“We didn’t want and didn’t deserve to go home, we could not let it end like that.”
He added:
“This group really deserved to keep going. We never give up, at all. Never.”
Argentina’s night began disastrously when Yasser Ibrahim gave Egypt an early lead before Messi saw his penalty saved by goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir in the 20th minute.
Egypt doubled their advantage through Mostafa Zico, leaving the defending champions on the brink of a shock exit.
However, Argentina mounted a remarkable comeback.
Messi first provided the assist for Cristian Romero to pull one back before scoring the equaliser himself in the 83rd minute. Deep into stoppage time, Enzo Fernandez completed the turnaround to seal a memorable 3-2 victory.
Messi’s equaliser was his eighth goal of the tournament, moving him back to the top of the Golden Boot standings ahead of Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland.
The goal also extended his remarkable record of scoring in six consecutive FIFA World Cup knockout matches, further cementing his place in tournament history.
Overcome with emotion at the final whistle, Messi embraced his teammates as Argentina secured another dramatic victory in what is widely expected to be the final World Cup campaign of his legendary career.
Argentina will face Switzerland in the quarter-finals on July 11 in Kansas City.
