Argentina survived a huge scare to keep their World Cup campaign alive, in doing so bringing a cruel end to Cape Verde’s fairytale debut at the tournament.
It was 120 minutes of all-action football, during which the defending world champions were twice pegged back, the second time via what will surely be remembered as one of the all-time great World Cup goals as Sidny Lopes Cabral whipped a stunning curled effort beyond the reach of Emiliano Martinez.
That strike came in the 103rd minute and cancelled out Lisandro Martinez’s emphatic goal to give Argentina a lead early in extra-time, which was only required after Lionel Messi’s opener was made immaterial by Deroy Duarte’s equaliser.
Cabral’s goal and the ensuing outpouring of emotion as he climbed into the crowd to embrace his family seemed set to be the defining moment of the match, and perhaps this World Cup.
Instead Argentina snatched it, Cristian Romero going for the header from Messi’s corner and in an effort to stop him, Borges put through his own net.
Messi gave the minnows their first fright after 15 minutes, breaking into the box and flashing a shot low beyond the far post.
His next chance was not long in coming and before the half-hour he had struck his 20th World Cup finals goal.
Martinez lofted a ball over the top to find Messi peeling off the shoulder of Borges. It took one touch with the outside of the left boot to bring it down and one more to lift the ball into the roof of Vozinha’s goal, another fine addition to the great man’s catalogue.
Cape Verde had acquitted themselves admirably and it was not undeserved when they levelled in the 59th minute.
Ryan Mendes played a lovely ball through the legs of his defender, finding Duarte who had the freedom of the Argentina penalty area. It was a lovely finish from the angle, Duarte shooting through the legs of Lisandro Martinez and in at the far post.
Vozinha denied Messi moments later when the forward looked certain to score from a one-on-one, then the goalkeeper showed alertness to avoid being caught out by a quick Messi free-kick.
The game moved into extra-time, already a remarkable achievement against the side ranked second in the world by the team ranked 13th in Africa.
It looked like being as good as it would get for the underdogs. Just over two minutes of the extra period had been played when Lisandro Martinez found space at the far post from a corner and fired high into the roof of the net.
But Cape Verde were not done. The strike from Cabral from far out on the left wing almost defied belief, swinging into the very top corner past the despairing dive of Emiliano Martinez.
It made what followed even more heartbreaking for the African side. With 10 minutes of extra-time to play, Romero rose highest form Messi’s corner and Borges inadvertently sent the ball past Vozinha.
Additional reporting: PA
