Argentina made hardwork for themselves in their last 32 match against Cape Verde. Despite going in at the break a Lionel Messi goal up and seemingly in full control of the tie, the underdogs equalised in the second forty-five, and the match went into extra time.
The South Americans reestablished their one-goal advantage just two minutes into extra time, only for Cape Verde to strike back in the 103rd minute. However, an own goal from the unfortunate Diney put Argentina ahead for a third occasion, and this time the favourites held on to secure their place in the last 16.
Argentina dominated the game, boasting an xG of 2.26 to Cape Verde's 0.47, had 64% of the overall possession, and 10 shots on target to their opponent's five, so will have been frustrated to have left it so late to secure their victory.
Messi and co have won every game so far, scoring three goals in three of their opening four matches at the 2026 World Cup, but have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last two games against Cape Verde and Jordan.
Messi scored the opening goal in the 3-0 win over Algeria, the 2-0 victory against Austria, and the narrow 3-2 win over Cape Verde last time out, so you wouldn't bet against the veteran forward opening the scoring against Egypt on Tuesday night.
Egypt had never won a game at the World Cup until their 3-1 victory over New Zealand during the group stage. The Pharaohs scored in all three group games and found the back of the net against Australia in their last 32 tie, but are yet to keep a single clean sheet at the 2026 World Cup.
Mo Salah is playing with an injury, and you can tell, but Egypt have still managed to look threatening in the final third. We've spoken about Argentina's defensive record in their last two games against weaker opposition than Egypt, and that is another reason why we're backing both teams to score on Tuesday night.
We're expecting a more professional performance from Argentina than we saw against Cape Verde, and while Egypt have what it takes to challenge the South Americans, we can only see this game going one way.
Another victory for Argentina and another goal for the record-setting Lionel Messi.
Argentina 3-1 Egypt
