Argentina battled past 10-man Switzerland 3-1 after extra-time to set up a mouthwatering FIFA World Cup 2026 semi-final against England.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Julian Alvarez’s curling shot and Lautaro Martinez’s tap-in settled a tense contest in second half extra-time after Alexis Mac Allister had opened the scoring and Dan Ndoye equalised for the Swiss, who had Breel Embolo sent off in the second half.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The hard-fought victory for Lionel Scaloni’s men at the Kansas City Stadium means the top four teams in the FIFA World Ranking will contest the semi-finals of the 2026 tournament.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The South Americans swept through the group phase but struggled past minnows Cabo Verde and needed a spectacular comeback against Egypt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Argentina took the lead with their first effort on target when Liverpool midfielder Mac Allister rose between Djibril Sow and Embolo to glance a header into the far corner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Messi was the provider from a corner, taking his tally of assists across six FIFA World Cups to 10. He is also joint top of the Golden Boot standings with eight goals, level with French forward Kylian Mbappe but he did not find the net on Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Swiss struggled to counter-punch but had a good chance on the half hour when goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez was quickly off his line to deny Embolo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Argentina failed to muster another effort on target before the break, with Switzerland outpassing the world champions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The game struggled to catch fire early in the second half but Murat Yakin’s men warmed to their task and got their deserved reward in the 67th minute, when Ndoye swept home following a clever ball from Ricardo Rodriguez.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Five minutes later Switzerland shot themselves in the foot when Embolo, who had been booked in the first half, threw himself to the ground and was dismissed following a VAR check.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mac Allister headed wide with the goal at his mercy as the clock ticked down and Messi sent a curling shot narrowly wide but Switzerland held on to force extra-time and continued to repel constant attacks in the first period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But Argentina finally broke Switzerland’s brave resistance with Alvarez’s moment of magic, which was celebrated by the whole squad, who were on the pitch again minutes later following Martinez’s strike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Argentina are now unbeaten in their past 12 FIFA World Cup matches as they attempt to become the first team since Brazil in 1962 to retain their FIFA World Cup crown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now the winners will turn their attention to the challenge of facing England in Atlanta on Wednesday after Thomas Tuchel’s men overcame Norway 2-1 earlier on Saturday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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