Soccer
Have Argentina used up their luck? Win over Swiss shows some magic still left
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Just a few days ago, I asked how much longer Argentina could continue playing with fire and rely on late surges to win matches at the World Cup.
Well, the answer is at least one more game.
La Albiceleste are through to the semi-finals after yet another late show on Saturday, this one against Switzerland in a quarter-final that needed 120 minutes to decide. That's because Argentina took an early lead and allowed the Swiss to level the score deep into the second half, forcing extra time until both Julian Alvarez and Lautaro Martinez scored after the 110th minute to give the South Americans a 3-1 victory.
- Read next | Argentina vs. Switzerland player ratings: Who made the best impression as Albiceleste advance?
It was the first match in this World Cup in which Lionel Messi failed to score, but the Argentina talisman was still very involved in his team's attack as he registered an assist and helped pull the strings against a tough Swiss side.
Additionally, it was the second of three knockout stage matches involving Messi and Co. to require extra time. Even their win over Egypt in the round of 16 was physically and emotionally taxing despite not going to extra time, as Argentina had to dig themselves out of a two-goal deficit over the final 14 minutes. That match left Messi in tears as he knew just how close he was to saying goodbye to the World Cup, likely for good.
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All of this is to say that Argentina have been through the ringer over the past week or so, playing 330 minutes (plus stoppage time) across three intense games in the dead of an American summer, and now they've got just four days before they have to do it all again with a spot in the World Cup final on the line.
Perhaps the saving grace for the Albiceleste is that their semi-final will come against England, a team that have run a gauntlet of their own in this knockout stages. The Three Lions looked tired in their win over Norway earlier on Saturday, and that may level the playing field against an Argentina side who may be running on fumes and vibes at this point.
However, with the never-say-die attitude Argentina have shown so far in this competition — mixed in with a little bit of luck and a lot of recent experience at winning major tournaments — it would be foolish to count them out.
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