Лионель Мессигээр удирдуулсан Аргентины шигшээ баг 3:2-ын харьцаатай эргэн ирэлт хийж, Дэлхийн аваргын түүхэнд бичигдэх гайхалтай ялалтыг байгууллаа.
Тоглолтын эхний хагаст Египет 1:0-ээр тэргүүлж, улмаар Зикогийн гоолоор давуу байдлаа хоёр болгон нэмэгдүүлсэн ч Аргентин Кристиан Ромеро болон Лионель Месси нарын гоолоор тооны харьцааг тэнцүүлж чадсан юм. Египетийн баг сөрөг довтолгооны аюултай хувилбаруудаар аварга багийг хүнд байдалд оруулж байсан ч VAR-ын шийдвэрээр нэгэн гоол нь тооцогдоогүй билээ.
Тоглолтын төгсгөлийн мөчид Аргентин ялалтын төлөө бүх хүчээ дайчлан довтолж байх үед Египет сөрөг довтолгоо хийн тоглолтыг шийдэх боломжтой байв. Энэ үед Аргентины хагас хамгаалагч Леандро Паредес хамгаалалтын шугамд ганцаардаж, Египетийн гурван довтлогчийн эсрэг эрсдэлтэй боловч амжилттай тоглолт үзүүлж, аюулыг зогсоосон нь тоглолтын эргэлтийн цэг болсон юм.
Улмаар 90 минутын дараах нэмэлт цагт Лаутаро Мартинезийн дамжуулалтаар Энцо Фернандес хожлын гоолыг оруулснаар Аргентин ялалт байгууллаа. Энэхүү гоолын өмнө гарсан маргаантай шүүгчийн шийдвэр болон Мессигийн сэтгэл хөдлөл нь уг тоглолтыг Дэлхийн аваргын түүхэн дэх хамгийн дуулиантай мөчүүдийн нэг болголоо.
Дэлгэрэнгүй эх сурвалжийг харах
Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
Where do you start with Argentina’s 3-2 comeback victory against Egypt? It was a World Cup classic, a game that will be talked about for generations, with its dramatic goals, Lionel Messi’s tears and more than a whiff of controversy that, as much as anything, will only add to its legend.
Amid all that, one place you definitely would not start is with a tackle, but that does not mean it was not a vital moment.
This was slap bang in the middle of the chaos, just 10 seconds into stoppage time. By this point, Argentina had wrestled the game back from the brink, after Cristian Romero sparked his country back to life with a powerful header and Messi slapped in a perfectly struck half-volley.
Egypt were 1-0 up at half-time but seriously threatened one of the great World Cup shocks in a dramatic second half, with Zico finishing a counter-attack, only to be denied after a VAR review for a soft foul on Lisandro Martinez well before in the build-up. Zico was not to be denied and finished another stunning counter-attack to give his side a two-goal lead.
It was that threat on the break that could have knocked the defending champions out, even after they had clawed their way back to 2-2. Far from being left on the floor by Messi’s equaliser — the exact thing that Egypt would have been dreading as soon as Romero had pulled one back — they were suddenly up and swinging again.
They had been sitting back, trying to keep out Argentina as England did with Mexico in another World Cup classic, but once Messi struck, they tried to win it all over again.
No justice at World Cup, says Egypt coach – as Messi scores again | Daily Briefing
Felipe Cardenas and Luke Bosher
Argentina continued to attack but with all the emotion and momentum of the equaliser, and the desire to get the winner, they seemed to completely forget about any kind of defending. With Egypt up off the canvas, it could have cost them.
A Messi pass intended for the area was cut out by Mohanad Lasheen, and Trezeguet slid in to mop up the loose ball. A quick pass into the middle suddenly set Egypt racing away with four players, looking to do what they had done twice to the holders.
Argentina only had two men back when Omar Marmoush took possession in the middle, 18 yards inside the Egypt half. One of them, defender Martinez, was easily bypassed by Marmoush’s first-time lay-off to Mohamed Salah.
Marmoush then essentially made the executive decision that his pass would be a one-two, as he ran around the back of Salah and steamed away with the ball again.
Leandro Paredes was Argentina’s holding midfielder, but in the closing stages of the match, before Messi’s equaliser had arrived, Romero had pushed up front, meaning that Paredes dropped deep, and when his country had the ball he was often the last line of defence.
So when Egypt broke away and Martinez was cut out of the equation, Paredes was left to face three forwards running at full tilt, with little help.
What followed was an iconic piece of World Cup defending. Paredes had seen the danger unfolding as the ball went inside to Marmoush, and started backpedalling. At one point, as Marmoush bore down on him, the Boca Juniors midfielder was fully facing his own goal as he attempted to check his left shoulder and the surroundings.
He would have seen Trezeguet, who continued his run forward after mopping up the loose ball, and by the time Paredes had turned his head the other way to look back at Marmoush, the forward was upon him.
Paredes anticipates the pass to Trezeguet, immediately turns to face Marmoush, slams on the brakes and dangles out a hopeful right leg.
The ball hits it, gently pops up into the air and lands again, just as Paredes springs to his feet.
He controls it and bursts forwards. Sensibly, considering the unfolding chaos, he laid the ball off and helped Argentina breathe, for a second at least.
One minute and 34 seconds later, the ball was in the back of the Egypt net. In the period between the tackle and the goal, Messi had tried to lead another attack and Egypt broke again, first launching a cross into the box and then dribbling in via Salah, who felt he was tripped by Julian Alvarez. It turned out to be one of the most controversial calls of this World Cup, as Argentina went up the other end and scored.
The move leading to Enzo Fernandez’s goal is relayed beautifully by Argentinian commentator Mariano Closs. “Senoras y senores, hay olor a gol,” he announces as Lautaro Martinez stands with the ball on the right — “Ladies and gentlemen, it smells of a goal”.
Only then does Lautaro Martinez send his ambitious cross into the area for Fernandez to plant his header into the far corner, capping a wild game.
Were it not for Paredes’ intervention, it could still have been very different.
