Image source, Getty Images

Egypt winger Mostafa Zico, whose goal was denied by VAR, speaking after his side's defeat:

"The referee was really not fair. Not fair. Referee not fair. The injustice was clear.

"We did a really good job in the early stages of the match. There's been an unfairness right from the start of the match.

"A 2-0 lead isn't enough to beat Argentina.

"It is clear that this tournament has been fixed. But God is sufficient for us."

Neil Johnston
BBC Sport in Miami

Image source, Getty Images

Egypt were down and out - and downright furious after the video assistant referee (VAR) ruled out a second goal by Mostafa Zico for a foul after midfielder Marwan Attia was penalised for slightly stepping on Lisandro Martinez at the start of the move, when they were leading 1-0.

They were also adamant Mohamed Salah was fouled in Argentina's penalty area, seconds before the reigning champions broke for the winner.

When French referee Francois Letexier signalled full-time, many of Egypt's players slumped to the floor in disbelief at what had just happened.

In an explosive interview after the game, Egypt boss Hossam Hassan said his side had been "treated unfairly" and "suffered injustice". BBC Sport has approached Fifa for comment.

"There have been a lot of things to be questioned on and off the pitch," added Hassan.

"Negative aspects all around. It's just about credibility, lack of credibility with how things unfolded.

"Perhaps they wanted to keep the world champion in the competition. Perhaps they wanted Messi to stay in the running.

"The world champion received support at every level. There seem to be pressures from the Argentina side on this outcome."

So, it was a great night for football fans to marvel once more at the magic of Messi.

But Egypt were aggrieved about referee decisions, and suggested they had been made with the Argentine's irresistible brilliance in mind...

From goalscorer to creator.Lionel Messi became the leading assist-maker in World Cup history with his cross for Cristian Romero's goal last night.

List of all time World Cup assists makers:

• Lionel Messi (Argentina) - 9
• Diego Maradona (Argentina) - 9
• Pierre Littbarski (Germany) - 7
• Grzegorz Lato (Poland) - 7
• Ivan Perisic (Croatia) - 6
• David Beckham (England) - 6
• Pele (Brazil) - 6
• Thomas Haßler (Germany) - 6
• Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany) - 6
• Thomas Muller (Germany) - 6
• Uwe Seeler (Germany) - 6
• Francesco Totti (Italy) - 6

Matthew Howarth
BBC Sport

Image source, Getty Images

Argentina were given another almighty scare before delivering a scarcely believable second-half comeback to break Egypt hearts and reach the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup.

The reigning world champions - sent to extra time by Cape Verde in the last round - had looked set for a shock exit against the Pharaohs, who led 2-0 thanks to goals from Yasser Ibrahim and Mostafa Zico.

But Cristian Romero halved the deficit 11 minutes from time before Lionel Messi – who had missed a first-half penalty – equalised five minutes later and set up a nail-biting finish.

Enzo Fernandez completed the comeback two minutes into injury time, heading home Lautaro Martinez's cross to set up a quarter-final tie against Switzerland.

The winner came on the counter-attack just moments after Egypt felt they had been denied a penalty for a trip on Mohamed Salah, to the fury of many on their bench.

It was impossible not to feel for Egypt, who had not won a World Cup match prior to this tournament but were minutes away from eliminating the three-time winners in Atlanta.

Victors over Australia in the round of 32, the Pharaohs sent their fans into ecstasy on 15 minutes when Ibrahim outjumped Lisandro Martinez to nod Marwan Attia's cross into the bottom corner.

But Argentina – and tournament top scorer Messi – were given a golden opportunity to restore parity when Haissem Hassan tripped Nicolas Tagliafico inside the penalty area five minutes later.

Egypt goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir, however, produced a magnificent save to deny the 39-year-old, who also had a penalty saved in a 2-0 victory over Austria in the group stage.

Shobeir was outstanding in the first half, saving well from Alexis Mac Allister's header before delivering a superb one-handed stop from Julian Alvarez's goal-bound effort three minutes before the interval.

Zico had a goal disallowed by the video assistant referee shortly before the hour mark, but the 29-year-old stroked home Hassan's delivery midway through the second period to leave Egypt on the brink of an unlikely quarter-final spot.

Argentina had created precious little up to that point, but Romero's 79th-minute header sparked Lionel Scaloni's team into life before Messi slammed home his 21st World Cup goal to set up a frantic conclusion to a pulsating contest.

Fernandez had the final say, his perfectly placed header completing one of the great World Cup recoveries with the 3,000th goal in tournament history.

Phil McNulty
BBC Sport chief football writer at Atlanta Stadium

Image source, Getty Images

Lionel Messi stood in the centre of Atlanta Stadium in floods of tears, sobbing on the shoulders of his team-mates, after adding another remarkable World Cup victory to the story of his incredible career.

Argentina's great sporting icon had been captured on the giant screens looking up in despair as the holders trailed Egypt 2-0 with less than 20 minutes left.

At that point, any tears Messi may have shed would have been the same as those of his great contemporary Cristiano Ronaldo, who made an emotional farewell to the World Cup after Portugal's injury-time loss to Spain.

Instead, this defiant Argentina decided that was simply not going to happen - scoring three goals in 14 minutes to turn the game around in one of the most remarkable comebacks the World Cup has ever seen.

Messi may be 39 and doing much of his work at walking pace these days, but the magic has not been dimmed by the passing of the years.

Messi watches. Messi waits. Messi conserves his energy for when it matters. The body may be slower but the brain remains razor sharp. The genius is permanent.

And he proved it once more in the most dramatic fashion on another spine-tingling World Cup occasion, pulling Argentina up from the canvas just as Egypt were about to add to this tournament's list of shocks.

First, we're focusing on Argentina, who pulled off a stunning comeback, coming rom 2-0 down to qualify for the next round.

I probably don't need to tell you which man was at the heart of world champions' revival...

Good morning, and welcome to today's live page.

As the round of 16 wraps up and we move into the quarter finals, you could say we are approaching the business end of the tournament.

The line up for the next round of the World Cup is complete after Argentina and Switzerland took the final two spots in the last eight last night.

Let's see how they did it...