Argentina had taken the lead early through Alexis Mac Allister's header from Lionel Messi's corner; and they looked good value for their lead till Switzerland upped the ante after half-time. Suddenly; they looked more & more menacing as Argentina seemed to back off; and it was not the biggest surprise when Dan Ndoye found space inside the penalty box to slot past Emiliano Martinez and bring the Swiss level.
Just when it seemed Murat Yakin's men had the upper hand though; a moment of madness from Breel Embolo turned the match on its head. For no apparent reason, he decided to do an Oscar-worthy simulation; with the referee first giving a yellow card to Leandro Paredes before going the other way & showing Embolo his second.
The match now turned again; but Argentina were still struggling to break through against a compact & disciplined Swiss unit; who were now operating in a defensive 5-3-1 formation. Until the moment of truth when Julian Alvarez unleashed an absolute stunner deep into extra-time to beak Swiss hearts. Just for good measure; they even counter-attacked and scored a third in stoppage time; with substitute Lautaro Martinez following up well after fellow sub Thiago Almada's shot was saved.
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