For 111 tense minutes in Kansas City, Argentina looked in danger of being dragged into penalties by a Switzerland side that refused to disappear. Julián Álvarez finally broke the resistance in the 112th minute, cutting inside from the left before curling a right-footed finish beyond Gregor Kobel. Lautaro Martínez then converted a rebound in the 121st minute to seal a 3-1 victory and send the defending champions into a semifinal against England.
Argentina had taken the lead after 10 minutes when Alexis Mac Allister headed in Lionel Messi’s corner. Switzerland responded with courage and equalised through Dan Ndoye in the 67th minute after he combined with Ricardo Rodríguez and slipped the ball beneath Emiliano Martínez from a tight angle. Breel Embolo received a controversial second yellow card five minutes later, but Switzerland survived the end of normal time and most of extra time before Argentina’s deeper bench finally decided the contest.
Ndoye Turns Swiss Pressure into An Equaliser
After Mac Allister’s early header, Argentina appeared ready to control the match. Messi had forced the corner with a sharp run toward the penalty area, then delivered the ball into a dangerous central space. Mac Allister attacked it cleanly and directed his header into the bottom corner.
The goal lifted a largely Argentine crowd, but it did not break Switzerland’s discipline. Murat Yakin’s side stayed compact, denied Messi room between the lines and gradually pushed more players forward after halftime.
Much of the Swiss danger came through Ndoye and Rodríguez on the left. Their movement repeatedly forced Nahuel Molina toward his own goal and created space around the edge of Argentina’s penalty area. Ndoye first tested Martínez with a far-post header, while Xhaka also forced the goalkeeper into action from distance.
Argentina ignored those warnings. In the 67th minute, Rodríguez exchanged passes with Ndoye and released him inside the area. From a difficult angle, Ndoye kept his balance and drove the ball under Martínez.
The equaliser changed the mood inside the stadium. Argentina no longer looked comfortable, while Switzerland suddenly sensed that the defending champions could be exposed.
VAR Review Leaves Switzerland with 10 Men
The match took another sharp turn only five minutes later.
Embolo carried the ball forward as Leandro Paredes moved across to challenge him. Referee João Pinheiro initially decided that Paredes had committed the foul and showed the Argentine midfielder a yellow card.
The video officials then recommended a review. Replays showed Embolo beginning to fall before meaningful contact arrived. Under the expanded mistaken-identity protocol, the referee could correct the punishment because he had booked a player from the wrong team for the incident.
Pinheiro returned from the monitor, cancelled the yellow card shown to Paredes and booked Embolo for simulation. The decision became far more serious because the Swiss forward had already received a yellow card before halftime for a foul on Paredes.
Embolo therefore received a second booking and was sent off. He left the field in tears as Swiss players surrounded the officials and protested the decision.
The ruling gave Argentina a numerical advantage, but it did not immediately give them control. Switzerland dropped deeper, protected Kobel and closed the central spaces around Messi. Mac Allister headed over before the end of normal time, while Messi sent a right-footed effort narrowly wide.
Despite playing with 10 men, Switzerland forced another 30 minutes.
Scaloni’s Substitutes Finally Break the Deadlock
Lionel Scaloni responded by sending on fresh attackers.
Nico González replaced Nicolás Tagliafico, Lautaro came on for Rodrigo De Paul and Thiago Almada entered for Enzo Fernández. Those changes stretched the Swiss defence and gave Argentina more runners around the penalty area.
Almada immediately carried the ball at tired defenders. He forced Kobel into a save, struck the side netting and kept Switzerland pinned near its own goal. Lautaro occupied the central defenders, allowing Álvarez to drift toward the left side rather than remain surrounded in the middle.
Still, the Swiss resistance held. Every clearance increased the tension among the Argentine supporters as the clock moved closer to penalties.
Álvarez ended that anxiety in the 112th minute. Argentina kept a broken attack alive, and the striker collected the ball near the left corner of the area. He shifted it onto his right foot and bent a precise finish toward the far side of the goal.
Kobel could only watch it fly beyond him.
“The opponent was really good but we fought until the end, and finally the goals came,” Julián Álvarez said.
The strike was Álvarez’s first goal of the tournament. It also came at the exact moment Argentina needed someone other than Messi to take responsibility for the result.
Lautaro Finishes a Match Switzerland Nearly Stole
Once Argentina moved ahead, Switzerland had to abandon its defensive shell.
Yakin’s side pushed forward in search of another equaliser, but the extra space left its exhausted defence exposed. Argentina recovered the ball and sent Almada racing into a 3-on-1 counterattack. Kobel blocked his first effort, but the rebound fell kindly for Lautaro.
The substitute reacted before Xhaka could clear and finished from close range in the 121st minute.
That final goal made the score look far more comfortable than the match had been. Switzerland had competed with Argentina for more than two hours. They recovered from an early setback, scored a deserved equaliser and survived deep into extra time despite losing Embolo.
Messi failed to score, ending a remarkable run across two World Cups. He had found the net in Argentina’s final four matches of the 2022 tournament and their opening five games in 2026. Switzerland became the first World Cup opponent in 10 matches to keep him off the scoresheet.
His influence still shaped the result. Messi created Mac Allister’s opener from a corner, but Álvarez and Lautaro delivered the goals that kept Argentina’s title defence alive.
Argentina did not produce a commanding performance. They needed 112 minutes and a moment of individual quality to overcome 10 men. Yet when their World Cup future became uncertain, Scaloni’s attacking depth provided the difference.
READ MORE: Surviving Cape Verde and Egypt Was Lucky, But Switzerland Requires a New Plan
FAQs
Q1. Who scored for Argentina against Switzerland?
Alexis Mac Allister opened the scoring. Julián Álvarez and Lautaro Martínez added Argentina’s two extra-time goals.
Q2. When did Julián Álvarez score the winning goal?
Álvarez broke the deadlock in the 112th minute with a curling right-footed finish.
Q3. Why did Breel Embolo receive a red card?
The referee booked Embolo for simulation after a VAR review. It was his second yellow card of the match.
Q4. Did Lionel Messi score against Switzerland?
No. Switzerland ended Messi’s nine-match World Cup scoring streak, but his corner created Mac Allister’s opening goal.
Q5. Who will Argentina face in the World Cup semifinal?
Argentina will face England after both teams won their quarterfinal matches.
