The Pharaohs prevailed over Australia in a penalty shootout and later learned they will face La Albiceleste in the next round. After the match, Salah was approached by the media, and the question focused on who he would choose for a “last dance.”

Without hesitation, and with a smile on his face, his only answer was decisive: “Messi.” Although they are unlikely to ever play together, Atlanta Stadium will see them go head-to-head next Tuesday to determine which of the two continues in the World Cup.

Last dance for the game’s biggest stars at this World Cup

Mohamed Salah is part of an elite group of stars likely playing their final matches for their national teams. Luka Modric has already bid farewell, Cristiano Ronaldo has scored several goals, while Neymar featured only briefly during the group stage.

However, the player still making headlines despite being 39 years old is Argentina’s number 10. Messi, who scored his seventh goal of the tournament against Cape Verde, remains one of the main figures of the competition and is aiming to secure back-to-back titles alongside his teammates.

What’s next for Salah and Messi?

Argentina’s path to a potential final has narrowed following their dramatic qualification for the Round of 16. They will now face Egypt on Tuesday at 12:00 p.m. ET. The winner will advance to the quarterfinals to meet the victor of the Colombia vs. Switzerland matchup.

The Round of 16 will start on July 4th with host nation Canada facing Morocco. A lot of good matches will unfold as eight games will deliver the final eight teams in the tournament.

These are the Round of 16 matchups:

• Canada vs Morocco – July 4th, 1:00 PM ET – Houston Stadium
• Paraguay vs France – July 4th, 5:00 PM ET – Philadelphia Stadium
• Brazil vs Norway – July 5th, 4:00 PM ET – New York New Jersey Stadium
• Mexico vs England – July 5th, 8:00 PM ET – Mexico Stadium
• Portugal vs Spain- July 6th, 3:00 PM ET – Dallas Stadium
• USA vs Belgium – July 6th, 8:00 PM ET – Seattle Stadium
• Argentina vs Egypt – July 7th, 12:00 PM ET – Atlanta Stadium
• Switzerland vs Colombia – July 7th, 4:00 PM ET – BC Place

Round of 16 World Cup bracket

With this bracket, we can assure one thing, out of the best eight third places that qualified to this round, only Paraguay are still alive, as all others were eliminated in the Round of 32.

In the Round of 32, we also saw three games get to the penalty shootouts and another two go into extra time to be settled there. Hence, emotions were not something fans were short of. Last World Cup’s finalists Argentina and France are still in the mix, so a possible rematch is still alive.

All three host nations are still alive

The 2026 World Cup is taking place in Canada, Mexico and the United States, and all three nations are still playing the tournament. However, Canada is the only one not playing the next round at home.

As for Mexico and the USMNT, they looked very dominant against Ecuador and Bosnia and Herzegovina respectively. Canada had a last-minute winner to be able to beat South Africa. Still, all three have tough matches in the Round of 16 but can’t be discounted.

In his postgame press conference, Scaloni praised Cape Verde for giving their absolute best and complicating the encounter. “I don’t know if Cape Verde is a great national team, but they gave 200%, and that levels things a lot,” Scaloni said. “I hope people realize that they are not an easy opponent. Congratulations to Cape Verde; we knew they were going to be a tough, difficult opponent.”

“We suffered too much. We deserved to win, but that doesn’t change the fact that they made things difficult for us,” Scaloni added, shifting focus to how his squad handled the pressure.

“We take away the positives. We never lowered our arms, which is something to highlight because we took hits at specific moments that can shrink you. That is much more important than other things.” Scaloni also noted that they already have their minds set on their Round of 16 match against Egypt. “We will correct what we need to correct; there are things I already have in mind.”

Cape Verde’s heroic role against Argentina

An own goal by Diney Borges in the 111th minute saved Argentina, which have a difficult path to the finals, from one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history, allowing them to narrowly overcome a heroic Cape Verde national team making their tournament debut.

The team, which occupies the 64th spot in the FIFA rankings, managed to equalize the score on two occasions against an opponent ranked second globally. After finishing the 90 minutes of regulation tied 1-1, Cape Verde forced their illustrious rival into extra time. Subsequently, Lisandro Martínez believed he had secured the victory for Argentina with a magnificent finish in the 92nd minute.

However, Sidny Lopes Cabral scored one of the great goals of the World Cup 11 minutes later, cutting inside from the left side of the box and unleashing a curling shot that beat goalkeeper Dibu Martínez into the top corner to make it 2-2. Ultimately, due to the own goal by Borges forced by Cuti Romero, Argentina walked away with the victory in a match where Lionel Scaloni’s squad suffered like it hadn’t in a very long time.

Messi was dribbling against plenty of Cape Verde’s opponents when he got tripped and as he fell, he collided with the knee of a Cape Verde player. The play came in extra time. This won’t put in jeopardy Messi’s availability as Argentina face Egypt in the Round of 16.

Thankfully, Messi was able to recover and even took the free kick for Argentina. Still, it was a visible bruise as he gave postgame interviews after the tough 3-2 win vs. Cape Verde. Even Lionel Scaloni said Cape Verde showed 200% effort in this game.

Messi was crucial for Argentina once again

Messi kept his goal-scoring streak going as he scored the first goal in the 3-2 thriller against Cape Verde. He then send the cross that ended in the Diney own goal. In fact, if that play counted as a Christian Romero goal, Messi would’ve broken the record for most assists in World Cup history.

Messi, at 39 years old, played the 120 minutes of the game with big-time intensity. He was still the most influential player on offense for the Argentina squad. Also, a shoutout must be made by mentioning Lisandro Martinez, who as a center back, scored and assisted in this game.

Messi battled World Cup sensation Vozinha in a great duel

Much has been said about Cape Verde’s 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha, and today Messi learned why the hard way. Despite scoring against him, Vozinha still denied him on many occasions.

Per SofaScore, Vozinha had eight saves in the game, and despite conceding three times (no fault of his own), he still received a very positive 8.4 grade. Cape Verde might have lost against Argentina. Still, they literally bruised them, as you can see in Messi’s forehead and how tough the match was.

“These are knockout matches, and no one gives you anything for free. Some might underestimate national teams because of their names, but we knew it wouldn’t be an easy game at all. It’s no coincidence that this team hasn’t lost to Spain or Uruguay. All the games will be extremely difficult,” Lionel Messi admitted to reporters after the game, in which he won yet another Man of the Match award. Messi also reminded the rest of the team they have a lot of work to do.

“Now the most important thing is to rest, think about the next match, and try to draw the positive aspects from today’s matchup. And address the negatives, because there were a lot, too.”

Messi shows concerns on how the game went

Although it took a while, Argentina broke the deadlock thanks to Messi’s seventh goal at the 2026 World Cup and his 20th goal in World Cup history. It felt like that would open the floodgates, and La Albiceleste would walk away with yet another commanding victory. However, Argentina were in for a surprise. Even Messi couldn’t believe how the action played out.

“We managed to achieve the hardest part by scoring the first goal, and we thought that would help us impose our playing style and play with greater calm, but the exact opposite happened,” Messi admitted.

Argentina vs Cape Verde will go down in history books

Although Argentina are the No. 2 team in the FIFA rankings and the reigning world champions, whereas Cape Verde’s FIFA ranking is much lower, it was shocking to see La Albiceleste panic as the game progressed, while the Blue Sharks showed a level of composure no one would have credited them with. Perhaps, it was a true case of the favorite playing under pressure, while the underdog had nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Still, Cape Verde and Argentina’s epic battle will go down as an all-time World Cup classic, a game in which David put Goliath against the ropes and earned the respect of friends and foes alike. Cape Verde’s journey at the 2026 World Cup has come to an end, but it won’t ever be forgotten.

As for Argentina, their dream of back-to-back World Cups is still alive—that’s all they could ask for. Still, they’d be blind not to admit there are several things they need to fix. Although he wouldn’t air the dirty laundry in public, Argentina’s captain was the first to shine a light on some matters that need attending.

Argentina found a way to win

Messi and Argentina’s path to a potential World Cup final in 2026 will only get tougher from now on. At the end of the day, winning and moving on is all that matters, but at some point, Argentina must find a way to avoid constantly finding themselves in these nail-biting games. It makes for entertaining soccer and must-see TV, but Argentine fans’ hearts can only take so many of these showdowns every four years.

Egypt advanced after defeating Australia in a heart-stopping match that required a penalty shootout. The sides drew 1-1 during regulation time, but Egypt ultimately prevailed 4-3 on penalties. This represents a historic triumph, sending Egypt to the Round of 16 for the first time in a World Cup.

The upcoming matchup between Argentina and Egypt is scheduled for July 7, 12:00 PM ET at Atlanta Stadium. The winner of this encounter is destined to face the winner of Switzerland vs. Colombia/Ghana, presenting a complicated outlook on the road to the World Cup final.

Messi continues to make history

The author of the opening goal was none other than Lionel Messi, who has now scored in eight consecutive World Cup matches. Messi impressively controlled a high ball inside the penalty area and unleashed a blast that was impossible for Vozinha to save. However, a surprise that stunned the entire world followed shortly after.

In the 59th minute of the match, following a long possession by Cape Verde and a side-to-side buildup, they broke through Argentina’s lines on the right flank. Ryan Mendes assisted Deroy Duarte with a great pass into the middle of the box to tie the match.

However, the match was ultimately resolved in extra time after Vozinha stood tall with several crucial saves during the final minutes of regulation. In extra time, on the very first dangerous play for Argentina coming from a corner kick, Lisandro Martínez hunted down the ball inside the box and unleashed an unstoppable strike past Vozinha.

The match did not end there, as before the first half of extra time concluded, Cape Verde’s Sidny Cabral conjured up a spectacular goal—surely the best of the World Cup—to equalize the match once again. But Messi stepped up in the second half of extra time, delivering a cross to Cuti Romero, who won the header and scored to secure the hard-fought victory.

Moreover, thanks to the locked bracket system, Argentina have a clear view of what their path to the 2026 World Cup final could look like. Needless to say, Argentina will come across much tougher opponents than Cape Verde, whose FIFA ranking paints a clear picture of just how much of an underdog they were. Watching Argentina struggle as much as they did against the Blue Sharks might be a

Still, La Albiceleste can’t take any rival for granted. Up next, Argentina will face Egypt, who have already secured their best finish ever at a FIFA World Cup thanks to their win over Australia. From then onwards, Messi and Argentina’s journey is subject to many more changes and possibilities.

For the time being, La Albiceleste must be content to have fought to live another day and must lick their wounds before gearing up for the next battle. Needless to say, it won’t be for the faint of heart.

Argentina’s path to 2026 World Cup final

Although Messi and his teammates will be the first to admit they are only focused on the next game in the schedule, they can’t resist but looking ahead. If Argentina defeat Egypt and advance to the quarterfinals, they will take on Switzerland or Colombia. The full Round of 16 bracket has all eight games set.

In the semifinals, Argentina could be in for a historic clash against arguably their two biggest rivals—though for very different reasons—as Brazil or England could potentially cross paths with La Albiceleste. However, Mexico or Norway could also reach the semifinals, setting up yet another World Cup showdown between Messi’s Argentina and Mexico, or the first-ever official match between Messi and Erling Haaland.

Regardless of who they face in a potential semifinal, it would surely be a game for the ages. As for the grand final, many expect Argentina and France to meet in a rematch of the greatest World Cup final in history (2022). However, the possibilities are seemingly endless—or, more accurately, just eight: France, Paraguay, Morocco, Canada, Portugal, Spain, the United States, or Belgium.

Argentina’s dream path to World Cup final

If only storylines and drama are considered, Messi’s national team could be in for an incredible path that goes down in the history books. In the quarterfinals, a clash with Colombia would be the most exciting matchup. In the semifinals, Brazil or England would be the most compelling matchups in terms of the narrative arc, though which one is better comes down to individual preference.

Something similar applies to the final. Some may argue a rematch with France is the best option, while others could make the case that a game against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal would be better, or even a matchup with the UEFA Euro champions, Spain, which would see Messi and Lamine Yamal share a pitch for the first time.

Before the start of this tournament, both Messi and Maradona were tied at the top of this ranking with eight assists. The current captain of La Albiceleste now has nine, adding another record to his remarkable career.

Who completes this important podium? German forward Pierre Littbarski and Polish player Grzegorz Lato, both from different eras, each with seven assists.

Messi’s World Cup assists

Lionel Messi’s nine World Cup assists are spread across the six tournaments he has played while representing the Argentina national team:

• Germany 2006: to Hernan Crespo (6-0 vs Serbia & Montenegro)
• South Africa 2010: to Carlos Tevez (3-1 vs Mexico)
• Brazil 2014: to Angel Di Maria (1-0 vs Switzerland)
• Russia 2018: to Gabriel Mercado and Sergio Aguero (3-4 vs France)
• Qatar 2022: to Enzo Fernandez (2-0 vs Mexico)
• Qatar 2022: to Nahuel Molina (2-2 vs Netherlands)
• Qatar 2022: to Julian Alvarez (3-0 vs Croatia)
• USA, Mexico & Canada 2026: to Cristian Romero (3-2 vs Cape Verde)

Messi’s record looks safe

Lionel Messi has become the all-time assist leader in World Cup history, and that record looks safe in 2026. Croatia international Ivan Perisic was trailing with six assists, but Croatia got eliminated by Portugal in the Round of 16.

It was only a matter of time before the opening goal arrived at Miami Stadium. The team led by Lionel Scaloni pressed forward relentlessly until the magic of the No. 10 finally appeared.

Once again, Messi sits at the top of the FIFA World Cup scoring chart. The Argentine star leads with seven goals, followed by Kylian Mbappe with six, while Erling Haaland and Harry Kane are both on five.

Argentina fans have packed the stadium, with their chants echoing nonstop since kickoff. The reigning world champions are looking to continue their steady progress in the tournament.

Messi’s previous goals

Lionel Messi’s goal in the Round of 32 further enhances the Argentine No. 10’s impact in the tournament so far. His three group-stage opponents were also among his victims.

Messi targets new record

Only one Argentine player in World Cup history has scored eight goals in a single tournament. Guillermo Stabile achieved the feat at the 1930 World Cup in Uruguay, and Messi is now just one goal away from equaling that record.

The 2026 edition of the tournament is no exception, with Argentina’s supporters once again making their presence felt through their jerseys, flags, and chants. A new song for this World Cup has become popular, calling on the team to fight for its fourth title.

The creativity behind this new hit features Lionel Messi as a central figure, as well as the iconic Diego Armando Maradona and his ill-fated appearance at the 1994 World Cup. This is the full lyrics of the chant sung by Argentine fans both inside stadiums and in the streets.

What are the lyrics of the Argentina fans’ song?

Once again, Argentine fans have managed to create a hit that transcends borders. Nostalgia, admiration for their idols, and a historical claim are all part of what people chant on every corner until they lose their voices.

“Soy hincha de la Selección
La aliento con el corazón,
Ganamos la tercera con Lionel,
Queremos ser campeones otra vez.
Y 32 años después, La Scaloneta va a vengar
La Copa que le robaron al diez,
La que no nos dejaron levantar.
Quiero ver la cuarta estrella,
Brillar en la camiseta.
Soy argentino de la cuna hasta el cajón.
Por Malvinas, por el Diego, por la última de Leo,
Argentina quiero verte bicampeón.”

Lyrics translated:

“I am a supporter of the national team
I cheer it on with all my heart.
We won the third title with Lionel,
and we want to be champions once again.
And 32 years later, La Scaloneta will avenge
the trophy that was taken from the No. 10,
the one we were not allowed to lift.
I want to see the fourth star shining on the jersey.
I am Argentine from cradle to grave,
for the Malvinas, for Diego, for Leo’s final chapter.
Argentina, I want to see you become back-to-back champions.”

The successor to the Qatar hit

The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar will be remembered by Argentinians for many reasons. Not only because the national team won its third world title, but also because of the iconic song “Muchachos…”, which became a true anthem for Argentina throughout the tournament and continued to echo long after the competition had ended.

From Mario Kempes to Diego Armando Maradona and Lionel Messi, every generation has added a new chapter to Argentina’s remarkable World Cup legacy.

Few countries can match the combination of legendary stars, iconic matches, and championship success that Argentina has achieved on the world’s biggest stage. Its history is filled not only with triumphs, but also with heartbreaking defeats that have made every title even more meaningful.

How many World Cups has Argentina won?

Argentina has won the FIFA World Cup three times: 1978, 1986 and 2022. Only a handful of nations have won more World Cup titles than Argentina: Brazil, Germany and Italy.

Argentina’s first World Cup title: 1978

Argentina captured its first World Cup on home soil in 1978. Led by Mario Kempes, who finished as the tournament’s top scorer, Argentina defeated a powerful Netherlands team 3-1 after extra time in the final at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires. Kempes scored twice in the final and became the face of Argentina’s first world championship.

Diego Maradona’s masterpiece in 1986

Argentina’s second title came at the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, thanks to one of the greatest individual tournaments ever played. Diego Armando Maradona inspired the team throughout the competition, producing legendary performances that remain part of soccer history.

His quarterfinal against England at Estadio Azteca featured both the famous “Hand of God” goal and the unforgettable “Goal of the Century,” widely regarded as one of the greatest goals ever scored. Argentina went on to defeat West Germany 3-2 in a thrilling final, cementing Maradona’s place among soccer’s greatest legends.

Lionel Messi completes the story in 2022

Argentina’s third World Cup arrived at the 2022 tournament in Qatar. After falling behind early in the competition with a shocking defeat to Saudi Arabia, Lionel Messi led Argentina on an unforgettable run to the final.

There, Argentina defeated France in one of the greatest World Cup finals ever played before winning on penalties. The victory finally gave Messi the one major trophy that had eluded him throughout his extraordinary career and completed one of soccer’s greatest legacies.

How many World Cup finals has Argentina lost?

Argentina has also finished as World Cup runner-up three times: 1930 (lost to Uruguay), 1990 (lost to West Germany) and 2014 (lost to Germany). La Albiceleste has played in six World Cup finals, winning three and finishing runner-up three more times.