{"id":5052,"date":"2026-07-16T08:03:35","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T08:03:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=5052"},"modified":"2026-07-16T08:03:35","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T08:03:35","slug":"late-heroics-lift-argentina-to-a-2-1-win-over-england-and-back-to-the-world-cup-final","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=5052","title":{"rendered":"Late heroics lift Argentina to a 2-1 win over England and back to the World Cup final"},"content":{"rendered":"<article>\n<div>\n<p><span>ATLANTA \u2014 No\u00a0\u201cHand of God\u201d\u00a0this time. Argentina didn\u2019t need it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Instead it was the\u00a0hallowed feet of Lionel Messi\u00a0and the unbreakable spirit of a team that has repeatedly fought back at this year\u2019s\u00a0World Cup\u00a0that is now one step away from back-to-back titles.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=5050\">The NBA is satisfied with salary cap system that led to the Celtics trading Jaylen Brown<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>Trailing 1-0 going into the 85th minute, Argentina rallied for a\u00a02-1 victory over England\u00a0on Wednesday with goals from Enzo Fernandez and substitute Lautaro Martinez.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><span>\u201cI dreamed it, I swear. I told Alexis [Mac Allister] that I was going to score. I told him that I was going to come on and I was going to win it,\u201d Martinez said. \u201dI can tell you this team keeps showing what it\u2019s made of.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p><span>At the final whistle, Messi fell to his knees in celebration while England players collapsed in disbelief \u2014 again. Add 2026 to 1986 and 1998 on the list of games when Argentina has extinguished English hopes at the World Cup.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI\u2019m gutted for the team, the staff, the fans,\u201d England captain Harry Kane said. \u201cWe worked so hard to be here. The lads have given every bit of blood, sweat, and tears. To fall short like we did is just gutting.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The defending champions will take on European champion Spain\u00a0in the final on Sunday\u00a0(3 p.m.) in East Rutherford, N.J. The best that South America has to offer against the best of Europe.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The loss for England will hurt a new generation of fans in a similar way to Diego Maradona\u2019s infamous handball goal in the 1986 World Cup quarterfinals, and the penalty shootout loss in 1998 when David Beckham was sent off for kicking Diego Simeone.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The difference is there can be no sense of injustice this time, even if England had victory in its sights after Anthony Gordon scored the opening goal in the 55th minute.<\/span><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p><span>The team was hanging on as the game wore on. England keeper Jordon Pickford made vital saves while Mac Allister sent a header off the post as wave after wave of Argentina attacks came.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Messi had largely been kept quiet. But when he\u2019s on the field, anything seems possible.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=5049\">Governor Ayotte again vetoes \u2018poorly drafted\u2019 N.H. bill that sought sex-separated bathrooms<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>He fed the ball to Fernandez to sweep in the equalizer from outside the box in the 85th minute. <\/span><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p><span>And two minutes into stoppage time, Messi sent in a cross for Martinez to head in the winner.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>It almost felt inevitable. Especially given the amount times Argentina has simply refused to give in at this year\u2019s World Cup. From Cape Verde to Egypt, Messi and Co. always seem to find a way.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>England, in contrast, came up short in the World Cup semifinals for the third time after losses to Germany in 1990 and Croatia in 2018. And it\u2019s another occasion in recent years when England\u2019s players have squandered a winning position in the later stages of a major tournament.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>They led 1-0 against Croatia in the semifinals eight years ago and lost, 2-1. They were up 1-0 against Italy in the European Championship final in 2021 and lost on penalties.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>On Wednesday,\u00a0England coach Thomas Tuchel\u2019s substitutions\u00a0seemed to be more intent on holding on, rather than killing the game off with another goal.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cWe played a good game for the majority of it. When we went 1-0 up, we seemed to just try to hold on, which at this level is not enough,\u201d Kane said. \u201cWe talk about knocking on the door. We\u2019re close, we just need to find that missing piece in the final stage of the tournament.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>In contrast, Argentina is one step away from history. Messi, now 39 and likely playing at his last World Cup, is one win away from further strengthening his case to be considered the greatest soccer player of all time.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cWe\u2019re going to try to win, we\u2019re going to leave everything out there,\u201d Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said. \u201cIt\u2019s very difficult to get people to understand what these players are showing. It\u2019s incredible. We are unique, truly, and it\u2019s not arrogance, it\u2019s from the heart. We are unique.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=5047\">R.I. judge denies Trump administration\u2019s bid to reinstate ban on immigrants<\/a><\/p>\n<div>\n<div>Biggest takeaways from the World Cup in Boston<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<div><figcaption><span>Boston Globe sports reporters break down what went well on and off the pitch during the FIFIA World Cup tournament in Boston.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Enzo Fern\u00e1ndez equalized in the 85th minute, and Lauturo Mart\u00ednez scored two minutes into stoppage time to earn the chance of a title repeat.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5051,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5052","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sport"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - 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