I had to rewatch this game hours later after the final whistle because I simply could not comprehend what had happened and was also feeling pulled in by the commentary from all over. I legit think I blacked out after Messi’s goal and even then I still thought Egypt had better odds of winning bc frankly, I have very little confidence in Argentina this World Cup. Rewatching this game was necessary to 1) breakdown tactics/plays from both teams, 2) digest what happened starting at the 75’ minute, and 3) have my own opinion on the calls (or non calls). First half Argentina was atrocious particularly bc Enzo and macallister have been having a terrible run of form this tournament and the squad have been heavily reliant on running the ball through messi again. Both of those are a recipe for disaster in addition to their terrible gaps for counter attacking plays. Egypt knew what to do, exploited those weaknesses and made 2 easy goals through very beautiful plays - even when one was disallowed from a late VAR call (which was a foul, but when it was called was bad). However, the moment messi moved back to his RW position and gave a beautiful service for cuti’s statement header, that was when Egypt started to crack. 10 minutes later, they concede another goal from messi this time and at that point, that is on Egypt’s tactical breakdown. Argentina’s 3rd goal seems to be contentious. Should there have been a VAR review for Alvarez’s tackle on Salah in the box? Yes. But was it a foul? No, bc Alvarez got the ball first, tapped Salah’s foot and Salah was diving for a call (it was not subtle at all). After a rewatch and reading/hearing comments from fans, players, managers, this game is simply a testament of Argentina’s experience on the world stage and their will to come back stronger. Conceding 2 goals in 10 minutes is simply bad game plan with complacency. It’s easy to point the blame when there’s an easy villain to yell at but at this point, own up to your mistakes.