Messi, Argentina lead to come-from-behind victory over Egypt
Lionel Messi helped Argentina beat Egypt 3-2, keeping the defending champions alive and advancing to the World Cup quarter-finals.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — After 72 long years, Switzerland has finally reached the quarterfinals of the World Cup. Ringing cowbells and shouting from the mountaintops.
or not.
Switzerland’s reward for their historic breakthrough will be cannon fodder for Lionel Messi and Argentina.
Of course, anything can happen on Saturday, July 11th. And we’ve already seen enough chaos at this World Cup to know it’s possible (I’m looking at you, Norway). Switzerland also talked about a good match and claimed that he has no worries about facing the defending champion.
But there is a difference between potential and potential, and unfortunately for Switzerland, it hasn’t actually happened.
Argentina has the greatest player of all time, Messi. The football gods were clearly on Albiceleste’s side, as he came back from the dead against Egypt and Cape Verde. Meanwhile, Switzerland will be without Johan Manzambi, who scored three goals and provided two assists in the group stage.
Have we talked about Messi?
“I don’t know if I can stop[Messi]for 90 minutes,” captain Granit Xhaka admitted on Friday, July 10.
Midfielder Denis Zakaria said: “We know he is one of the best players in the world and we have to play a great game against Argentina. But in the end Argentina is not just about Messi. All the players are good players and we know we don’t have to focus only on Messi.”
Well, that doesn’t help the Swiss case.
Argentina vs. Switzerland match from 2014 will not be taken into account
This is not the first time Switzerland will face Argentina in the finals. They played in the Round of 16 in 2014 and went into extra time before Angel Di Maria scored for 118.th Minutes.
But 12 years is an eternity during a World Cup, and any resentment Switzerland may have harbored is long gone.
“This is completely different from the game in 2014,” said Xhaka, who remains with the team along with Ricardo Rodriguez.
The Swiss international deserves complete respect. They have reached the quarter-finals of the last two European Championships and reached the finals of five of the last six World Cup appearances.
Here they won the group, which was thought to be made up of Canada, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Qatar.
But this World Cup was set up as a rematch of the Argentina-France final four years ago, and little has happened since then to change that.
The strongest team rises to the top in the World Cup
France are top-flight in the tournament, with Kylian Mbappé scoring at will and Les Bleus still untested. Argentina was a roller coaster. But it’s the fun kind of getting back in line as soon as everyone gets off, not the unstable kind where death traps await.
No matter how difficult the situation is, Argentina will find a way to win. Messi’s presence helps, but this team is so experienced and so used to each other that it will take an exceptional team to beat them.
France, perhaps Spain, is an exceptional team. Switzerland, not so much.
“We know that Argentina has many qualities. Few people talk about Switzerland’s qualities. But you will see that we have many qualities,” Xhaka said. “Tomorrow we will talk on the pitch and show what we can do. Nothing else matters.”
Switzerland is not Norway
Switzerland is not Norway. It may have been surprising to see Erling Haaland and Norway reach the quarter-finals before the tournament even started, but there is no doubt that they are one of the best teams left.
Switzerland? Again, not that much. Colombia had the upper hand in the Round of 16, but Switzerland was lucky that Cafeteros failed to score, forcing the game into a penalty shootout.
Argentina is a country that has a history of inducing heart attacks, so it’s unlikely things will go that far.
“We have to be ready. We know we will be playing against the best team in the world,” Zakaria said. “We have to play a great game to win that game. If we’re not ready, we can’t win that game.
“Yes, we must sleep well and prepare for tomorrow’s battle.”
Switzerland made history in this World Cup. That’s probably enough.
Follow USA TODAY sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrarmour.
