Defending champions Argentina suffered an early setback in their FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 clash against Egypt after conceding a first-half goal at Atlanta Stadium on Tuesday. With a place in the quarter-finals at stake, Lionel Scaloni's side found themselves trailing in the 15th minute when Yasser Ibrahim rose above the Argentine defence to head home from a Marwan Attia cross following a well-worked short corner routine.
Argentina had an immediate opportunity to draw level after Nicolas Tagliafico was brought down inside the penalty area by Haissem Hassan in the 19th minute. The referee immediately pointed to the spot, handing Lionel Messi the chance to draw Argentina level and take the lead in the race for the tournament's Golden Boot.
The Argentina captain, however, was denied by Egypt goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir, who guessed correctly and dived to his left to push away Messi's effort in the 21st minute, allowing Egypt to maintain their surprise 1-0 advantage.
The miss added another unwanted chapter to Messi's remarkable World Cup career. It was the fourth penalty he has failed to convert in normal or extra time at the FIFA World Cup, extending his own record for the most penalties missed in the tournament's history (excluding penalty shootouts). Messi has now taken eight penalties across World Cup matches, converting four and missing four for a 50% conversion rate.
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Messi's first World Cup penalty miss came against Iceland in Argentina's opening match of the 2018 tournament, before he was denied by Poland's Wojciech Szczęsny during the 2022 group stage despite Argentina eventually winning 2-0. Earlier in the ongoing 2026 tournament, he fired a penalty wide against Austria in the group stage before scoring twice later in the match.
His latest miss against Egypt now leaves him alone at the top of an unwanted World Cup record, moving further clear of former Ghana striker Asamoah Gyan, whose two misses had previously been the benchmark before Messi surpassed it earlier in the tournament.
Messi's previous World Cup penalty misses ultimately did little damage to Argentina's campaign, with La Albiceleste drawing against Iceland in 2018 before winning both matches against Poland in 2022 and Austria in 2026. However, his latest miss could prove far more costly, with the defending champions trailing Egypt 1-0 at half-time in their Round of 16 clash.
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