Lionel Messi Makes Unwanted World Cup History With Penalty Miss vs Egypt
- Argentina captain Lionel Messi had his penalty saved by Egypt goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir in the first half of their last-16 World Cup clash on Tuesday
- Egypt had taken the lead in the 15th minute through Yasser Ibrahim, but Argentina had the chance to equalise from the penalty spot shortly afterwards
- However, Messi’s spot-kick was brilliantly saved by Shobeir, who guessed correctly by diving to his left before pushing the ball to safety
Lionel Messi endured a frustrating first half against Egypt after seeing his penalty saved by goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir, as Argentina fell behind in their 2026 FIFA World Cup Round of 16 clash in Atlanta.
The missed spot-kick not only left the defending champions trailing, but also saw Messi set an unwanted FIFA World Cup record, while missing the chance to move clear in the race for the Golden Boot.
Source: Getty Images
Messi makes unwanted World Cup history with penalty miss
Messi stepped up early in the match hoping to give Argentina the lead, but his effort, struck low to the goalkeeper's left, was comfortably saved by Egypt goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir.
The save continued Egypt's impressive run from the penalty spot following their shootout victory over Australia in the previous round.
Per The Independent, it also added another disappointing chapter to Messi's World Cup penalty record.
The Argentina captain has now failed to convert three of his last four penalties at the tournament, with previous misses coming against Cape Verde and Austria before his latest failure against Egypt.
Overall, Messi has now missed four of his eight penalties at FIFA World Cups, meaning half of his attempts from the spot have been unsuccessful.
His most recent successful World Cup penalty came in the 2022 final in Qatar.
The latest miss also saw Messi become the first player in FIFA World Cup history to miss two penalties during the same tournament, excluding penalty shootouts.
In addition, he now holds the unwanted record for the most missed penalties in World Cup history with four, two more than former Ghana striker Asamoah Gyan.
The penalty miss also prevented Messi from moving ahead in the Golden Boot standings, leaving him level on seven goals alongside Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe, while Harry Kane sits just one goal behind.
Shobeir inspires Egypt as Argentina struggle
Shobeir's heroics did not end with Messi's penalty.
The 26-year-old produced two more outstanding saves before half-time, first denying Alexis Mac Allister with a superb point-blank stop before producing a brilliant reflex save low to his left to prevent Julián Álvarez from turning home a dangerous cross.
Messi also came close from a free-kick later in the half, but watched his effort crash against the far post as Argentina's frustration continued to grow.
Egypt then stunned the defending champions by taking the lead through Yessar Ibrahim, who powered home a header after meeting Marwan Attia's floated cross from the right.
After surviving a major scare against Cape Verde in the previous round, Argentina boss Lionel Scaloni made several changes to his starting line-up in an attempt to freshen up his side.
Julián Álvarez replaced Lisandro Martínez, while Facundo Medina came in for Nicolás Tagliafico.
Leandro Paredes also started in place of Thiago Almada, joining Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernández and Rodrigo De Paul in midfield.
Argentina started brightly but gradually allowed Egypt to grow into the contest, with the Pharaohs taking full advantage to seize a shock first-half lead.
Source: YEN.com.gh
