Absolute madness in Atlanta: For 84 minutes, England was on its way to the World Cup final. For 84 minutes, an entire kingdom allowed itself to believe that its 60-year wait was about to end. Then Leo Messi decided his story was not over yet.
Two brilliant assists in seven minutes turned the evening from an English celebration into another chapter in the extraordinary career of Lionel Messi. Enzo Fernandez equalized in the 85th minute, Lautaro Martinez completed an unimaginable comeback in the 92nd, and Argentina beat the Three Lions 2-1 overnight between Wednesday and Thursday in the World Cup semifinal in Atlanta.
The world champion, which was minutes away from losing its title, advanced to a second consecutive final and will face Spain, which eliminated France in the first semifinal. England, which could already see the final in front of it, is again left with the questions, the tears and the cruel feeling that history simply refuses to change.
This was supposed to be the night when football truly came home. Anthony Gordon scored in the 55th minute, the English stand erupted and the kingdom was sent into a frenzy. Thomas Tuchel’s side held the lead for half an hour, cleared ball after ball and managed to almost completely neutralize Messi.
But against the greatest player of his generation, sometimes one second of lost concentration is enough. In the 85th minute, Messi received the ball outside the box, drew the English defense toward him and slipped a perfect pass to Enzo Fernandez. The midfielder arrived from deep, fired into the net and made it 1-1. The Argentine fans roared, the English froze — but the real drama had not yet begun.
Argentina celebrates its victory over England
(Photo: Agustin Marcarian/Reuters)
Seven minutes later, with the match seemingly headed for extra time, came the moment that broke England. Messi delivered a perfect cross and Lautaro Martinez headed it in.
Four years after lifting the trophy in Qatar, the No. 10 arrived in North America with nothing left to prove. He was already a world champion, had already completed the collection and had already erased the final asterisk from his career. Even if Argentina had been eliminated, his place in history would not have been damaged in the slightest.
But Messi did not come to the World Cup to receive applause for the past. Even at 39, he refused to become a nostalgic attraction or a supporting player. He arrived in the semifinal after scoring eight goals and adding two assists in the tournament — and precisely when it seemed England had managed to stop him, he produced two moments that changed everything.
Messi scores the winning goal
( Photo: Rebecca Blackwell/AP)
With his two assists against England, Messi raised his tournament tally to eight goals and four assists. He was directly involved in 12 goals and continued to extend his list of World Cup records in the sixth World Cup of his career. But beyond the numbers, it was once again the way he did it: For most of the match he was barely felt, and then, in two moves, he overturned a scoreline, a match and history.
The assist for Fernandez was precise. The assist for Lautaro was genius. Together, they were a reminder that even after two decades at the top of world football, Messi can still see things on the pitch that no one else sees.
Argentina advanced to the final for the seventh time in its history and will try to win a second consecutive title and fourth overall. If it beats Spain, it will become the first team since Brazil in 1962 to successfully defend the World Cup.
For Messi, this will be a chance to add an almost unimaginable ending to his World Cup career. Four years after leading Argentina to the title in Qatar, he is one win away from lifting the trophy again — this time at 39, in a tournament in which many expected him mainly to say goodbye.
England will try to understand how everything collapsed so quickly. For long stretches, it executed its game plan almost perfectly. It closed down the spaces, prevented Argentina from reaching chances and was on its way to a victory that could have changed its history. But in knockout matches, especially against Messi, the word “almost” means nothing.
In the 84th minute, England was in the final. In the 93rd, it was out. In between came two assists from one genius, two Argentine goals and another English heartbreak that will immediately enter the long and painful list of the national team’s disappointments.