After watching Argentina beat Cape Verde 3-2, relying solely on Messi to win the title is tough, five incredible things emerged!

04/07/2026 10:35:27 test8088

On July 4th Beijing time, the World Cup knockout round of 16 continued. Defending champion Argentina withstood the impact of the biggest dark horse Cape Verde, advancing with a 3-2 extra-time winner. Argentina's victory was extremely difficult, narrowly surviving after hardships. However, this win served as a wake-up call for Argentina: they cannot rely solely on Messi, otherwise defending the title will be very challenging. At the same time, five incredible things emerged, let's take a look!

Cape Verde is a World Cup debutant, only getting the chance to participate due to the expansion. This team stunned everyone from the start: they held strong Spain to a 0-0 draw, then drew 2-2 with Uruguay and 0-0 with Saudi Arabia, earning three consecutive draws and miraculously advancing to the knockout stage as group runners-up, constantly making history and creating miracles. They earned the opportunity to challenge defending champion Argentina. As a result, they caused Argentina great trouble, coming from behind twice to equalize, but ultimately couldn't hold on at the end of extra time, conceding a goal to lose 3-2. It was a pity defeat, while Argentina struggled to win and continue their title pursuit. The five incredible things are as follows!

First, Messi scored another goal in this match, breaking multiple records. Most importantly, he increased his World Cup all-time top scorer tally to 20 goals, leaving Mbappe two goals behind. The 39-year-old Messi is still so formidable—it's truly incredible!

Second, Cape Verde remained unbeaten in 90 minutes against three world champions: Spain, Uruguay, and Argentina. This is truly incredible; it must be said that Cape Verde has remarkable resilience!

Third, Argentina won with such difficulty, which only shows how well Cape Verde played. As a debutant team challenging the defending champion, they held their own and only lost narrowly in extra time—truly incredible. Cape Verde is really something!

Fourth, FIFA's expansion has sparked debate, but Cape Verde proves that expansion is necessary, giving small nations a chance to shine. They repeatedly made history—truly incredible. It can be said that Cape Verde can leave with their heads held high!

Fifth, Argentina's narrow 3-2 victory over Cape Verde was so hard-fought that it's somewhat incredible, given that Argentina's value and strength absolutely overpowered Cape Verde. It was literally a narrow escape. The team absolutely cannot rely solely on Messi, because they can't expect him to explode every game. Argentina needs other players to step up if they want to defend the title!