Defending champions Argentina defeated Switzerland 3-1 after extra time to book their place in the semifinals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Saturday.Julian Alvarez broke the deadlock in the 112th minute with a long-range strike before Lautaro Martinez added a third goal in the closing minutes.Argentina will now face England in the semifinals on Wednesday after the Three Lions beat Norway 2-1 earlier in the afternoon.
Mac Allister gives Argentina an early lead
Argentina started well and took the lead after 10 minutes.Lionel Messi delivered a corner from the left, and Alexis Mac Allister found the net to put the defenders ahead.Messi did not score in the match, which ended his scoring streak at nine World Cup games, but he still played a big part in Argentina’s victory.
Switzerland is fighting for a red card
Switzerland refused to give up and equalized in the 67th minute through Dan Ndoye.However, the game took a dramatic turn just minutes later.Leandro Paredes was initially shown a yellow card for a challenge on Breel Embolo. After a VAR review, the officials ruled Embolo had gone down before contact.As Embolo had already been booked for the match, a yellow card was transferred to him under FIFA’s “mistaken identity” protocol. It was his second booking, and Switzerland were reduced to 10 men.It was also the second time in World Cup history that the “misinformation” rule was used to overturn a yellow card decision.
Argentina has the largest population
Despite having a chance on the count, Argentina had to wait until extra time to get the win.Julian Alvarez finally put his side in front with a beautiful strike from distance in the 112th minute.With Switzerland pushing for an equaliser, Lautaro Martinez scored in extra time to seal a 3-1 victory.
Argentina continues its unbeaten run
Argentina have now extended their unbeaten run in the tournament FIFA World Cup that’s 12 matches.The hosts had to struggle in the knockout stages, needing extra time to beat Cape Verde before coming up two goals down against Egypt in the Round of 16.Against Switzerland, they once again found a way to win and keep their dream of retaining the World Cup alive.The victory also means that the top four teams in the FIFA competition – Argentina, England, France and Spain – have all reached the semifinals.
