LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — Lionel Messi led a stunning late fightback as Argentina defeated Egypt 3-2 to reach the World Cup quarter-finals on Tuesday, the reigning champions recovering from a two-goal deficit to escape a monumental upset.

Egypt looked poised to score a famous victory at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium after goals from Yasser Ibrahim and Mostafa Zico left them 2-0 up with just 11 minutes of normal time remaining.

But Cristian Romero’s 79th-minute header from a pinpoint Messi cross gave the defending champions a lifeline at 2-1.

Four minutes later, Messi volleyed in a superb equaliser — his eighth goal of the tournament — to make it 2-2 and spark wild celebrations among the huge contingent of Argentina fans in the 68,239 crowd.

With extra-time looming, Enzo Fernandez nodded in a sensational winner in the second minute of time added on to finally break Egypt’s resistance.

“Being able to experience moments like this, honestly, I thank God, I’m privileged,” Fernandez said afterwards.

“I want to highlight my teammates — we have a phenomenal group, a group that never gives up no matter the difficulties and adversity. We’re always together,” the Chelsea midfielder added.

Fernandez’s goal capped what had been an epic contest, which saw Messi miss a first-half penalty for the second time this tournament, and Egypt have a second-half goal ruled out in a controversial VAR decision.

Furious Egyptian coach Hossam Hassan said his team had been “cheated” by the decisions that went against them.

“I do not want to put it nicely and talk about hard luck. We have been cheated unfairly today, we have suffered injustice,” said Hassan.

“We haven’t seen respect or fair play. There has not been respect or fair play.”

The win was another nail-biting close shave for Argentina, who had been taken to the wire by Cape Verde in an extra-time thriller in the last 32 on Friday.

Argentina will now face Switzerland in the quarter-finals.

The Swiss are the latest team into the quarter-finals after Spain and Belgium booked their tickets to the last eight on Monday.

Argentina midfielder Alexis Mac Allister celebrates their second goal. (Photo: AFP)

Spain ended Cristiano Ronaldo’s World Cup dream by beating Portugal 1-0 while Belgium crushed the United States 4-1.

Defeat for Mauricio Pochettino’s men means none of the host nations remain in the 2026 tournament following the earlier exits of Canada and Mexico.

The build-up to the game in Seattle was overshadowed by controversy after forward Folarin Balogun was cleared to play despite being sent off against Bosnia and Herzegovina last week.

It emerged that the bombshell ruling followed a personal call by President Donald Trump to FIFA chief Gianni Infantino urging him to review Balogun’s punishment.

Belgium’s jubilant players celebrated Monday’s win by trolling Tump — mimicking the US leader’s signature dance to
YMCA in their locker-room following Monday’s win, accoding to video footage shared widely on social media.

The United States Soccer Federation meanwhile indicated that US coach Pochettino might stay on as the team’s boss, saying in a statement on Tuesday that discussions with the Argentine were ongoing.

“We had positive conversations with Mauricio before the World Cup about the future,” US Soccer said in a statement. “We agreed we would continue those conversations following a chance to rest and reflect post-World Cup.

Argentina forward Lionel Messi (left) and Egypt’s defender Karim Hafez (on ground) fight for the ball while Argentina’s Gonzalo Montiel looks on during the FIFA World Cup round-of-16 football match at Atlanta Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, on Tuesday. (Photo: AFP)