Argentina booked their place in the FIFA World Cup semi-finals after defeating Switzerland 3-1 in extra time in a thrilling quarter-final clash at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, USA.
The South Americans controlled the opening stages and were rewarded in the 10th minute when Alexis Mac Allister finished off a brilliant assist from Lionel Messi to give Lionel Scaloni’s side an early lead.
Messi pulled the strings throughout the first half, while Switzerland struggled to create meaningful chances. The Swiss were dealt another setback before the break as Breel Embolo picked up a yellow card for a late challenge.
Switzerland came out stronger after halftime and restored parity in the 67th minute through Dan Ndoye, who calmly converted Ricardo Rodriguez’s well-weighted pass.
Their comeback suffered a major blow just five minutes later when Embolo received a second yellow card, leaving Switzerland to play the rest of the match with 10 men.
Scaloni responded by introducing Nicolas Gonzalez, Lautaro Martinez and Gonzalo Montiel in search of a winner, while Switzerland also made several substitutions to stay competitive.
Neither side could find the breakthrough in regulation time, forcing the contest into an additional 30 minutes.
Argentina brought on Thiago Almada before extra time, while Switzerland replaced Denis Zakaria with Ardon Jashari shortly after.
The game became increasingly physical, with Almada and Lautaro Martinez both booked during extra time.
Argentina finally regained the lead in the 112th minute when Julian Alvarez clinically finished after impressive work from Junior Lopez to make it 2-1.
Lautaro Martinez sealed the victory in added time of extra time, firing home Argentina’s third goal to secure a deserved 3-1 win.
Despite a determined performance from Switzerland, Embolo’s dismissal proved costly as Argentina’s quality eventually shone through.
The victory sends Argentina into the World Cup semi-finals, keeping their dream of lifting another world title alive.
