Article #71847

Lionel Messi’s Argentina staged a remarkable fightback with three late goals to reach the quarter-finals

You wait all day for one Ed Aarons post … then two come along at once! Just as I was trailing his preview piece, Ed gets in touch with this communiqué from Georgia.

The atmosphere is building at the Atlanta Stadium, where temperatures are already in the 30s. Thankfully it’s fully air-conditioned inside. As you might expect, there are thousands of Argentina fans here to see if the reigning champions can book their place in the quarterfinals but not all have managed to get tickets. One has even cycled all the way from Buenos Aires to be here so let’s hope he gets lucky. There’s also plenty of Pharaohs fans wearing Mohamed Salah shirts. Can the Egyptian King inspire them to a famous victory?