Messi is the Messiah: Leo lights Argentina’s path to final with comeback win over England

When things go bad for Argentina, they have Lionel Messi to look to. And he delivered in style with two assists as the holders defeated England 2-1 in the FIFA World Cup 2026 semifinal at Atlanta Stadium to march into the final.

In the opening stages, Argentina adopted a physical approach to disrupt England's game, and it worked until the 55th minute when Anthony Gordon broke the deadlock to give England a 1-0 lead.

Gordon's goal was an absolute masterclass. Declan Rice fed Morgan Rogers on the right. He then spotted Gordon making a run in from the left and played the ball into the box. Gordon sneaked in with the Argentine defender unsure of who was picking him up before delicately chipping the ball into the net.

It was from that moment that Argentina came back into the game. Following the hydration break, Messi showed why he is regarded as the world's best player. Argentina pushed England into their own third and relentlessly searched for an equaliser.

In the 69th minute, substitute Nico Gonzalez met Messi's superb inswinging cross with a header, but Jordan Pickford produced an excellent low save to keep England in front.

Argentina continued to pile on the pressure, with Alexis Mac Allister getting a couple of attempts on goal, but neither could find the breakthrough.

In the 79th minute, Mac Allister got on the end of a Rodrigo De Paul cross from the right and directed a low header towards goal. However, Pickford was well-positioned and made a comfortable save to preserve England's lead.

And then came the big moment in the 85th minute through Enzo Fernandez. Messi took a short corner and, after the ball was deflected back to him, slipped a pass to Enzo. His shot squeezed past a crowd of England defenders and Jordan Pickford to level the scores.

After drawing level, Argentina continued to search for a winner, and once again Messi lit the way. In the second minute of stoppage time, Lautaro Martinez headed home from close range after Messi won back possession and delivered a devastating cross that the substitute powered into the net.

After that, it was only a matter of seeing out the remaining minutes as Argentina booked their place in the final against Spain in New York on Sunday.

The first half of the match was entertaining too, but unlike the second half, it was defined as much by physicality as attacking football. The busiest man on the pitch during the opening 45 minutes was referee Ismail Elfath, who had to blow his whistle every few minutes to restore order after a series of fouls.

The game turned scrappy early on, drawing comparisons with the fiery 2022 World Cup quarter-final between Argentina and the Netherlands, which produced a combined 48 fouls and a record 18 yellow cards.

In the first 20 minutes alone, eight fouls were committed, with Argentina responsible for five of them. The South Americans appeared intent on imposing themselves physically, while England looked to create openings through quick, fluid attacking moves.

England's best chance came in the 19th minute when Morgan Rogers combined well with Reece James on the overlap, but Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez comfortably gathered James' cross from the right.

Argentina also threatened with a run into the box, but Lionel Messi was flagged offside before the move could develop.

Despite the game's physical nature and frequent fouls, the first yellow card did not arrive until the 37th minute. It took a foul on Messi by Elliot Anderson to finally prompt the referee into action. The challenge sparked an immediate reaction from the Argentina players, who surrounded the official, but the referee made no mistake in showing Anderson a deserved yellow card.

England carved out another opportunity in the 33rd minute when John Stones rose at the back post under pressure from Emiliano Martínez, but headed Declan Rice's free-kick wide of the upright.

Argentina had their chance a few minutes later. In the 38th minute, Enzo Fernández unleashed a powerful long-range strike that flew narrowly wide of the top-right corner of Jordan Pickford's goal.

England continued to produce some promising attacking moves but failed to find a way through Argentina's resolute defence.