When the match was only more than 10 minutes left, Argentina was still trailing Egypt 0-2 and facing the risk of becoming the former World Cup champion. Those could also be the last minutes in Lionel Messi's illustrious World Cup career.
But like many times before, the 39-year-old superstar appeared at the right time to change everything. El Pulga assisted Cristian Romero to narrow the score, before scoring the equalizer himself just a few minutes later. In injury time, Enzo Fernandez completed a 3-2 comeback, bringing Argentina to the quarter-finals of the 2026 World Cup.
If Messi continues to write a new chapter in his glorious international career, then for Mohamed Salah, the match in Atlanta ended with another regret.
This could be the last World Cup of the Egyptian striker, and he has been very close to the most symbolic victory of his career when he and his team led the defending champion by 2 goals. However, the last historic moment still turned his back.
What is special is that Salah was once called the nickname "Messi of Egypt" when he first emerged from the El Mokawloon training academy. With his skillful left foot, speed and dribbling ability, he was once considered a version of the Argentine superstar.
But nearly two decades later, Salah is no longer remembered for those comparisons. He built his career in his own way to become one of the greatest players in African football history.
Salah's path is completely different from Messi's. While Messi grew up in Barcelona and soon won all major titles with one of the greatest teams in history, Salah had to go around Basel, Chelsea, Fiorentina and Roma before reaching the top with Liverpool.
The difference between the two legends is also increasingly clear when entering the final stage of their careers.
Messi gradually retreated deeper, becoming the "conductor" regulating the play with tactical vision and sharp passes. Even when not exploding in speed, he can still completely control the pace of the match.
Meanwhile, Salah still promotes his strengths in acceleration and transitions. However, when speed is no longer the same as before, he is no longer capable of creating influence throughout the match like Messi.
Against Argentina, Salah still played very hard but could not create a decisive moment to maintain the advantage for Egypt. Conversely, Messi only needed a few minutes of explosion to change the course of the match.
That is also the biggest difference between the two stars. Messi had faced much criticism in Argentina before completing his journey to conquer the Copa America and World Cup, thereby affirming his position at the national team level.
Salah has also dedicated almost his entire career to Egypt. He helped the team surpass the World Cup group stage for the first time and win their first match in the knockout round. However, the big title with the national team still avoids the striker born in 1992.
At the age of 34, Salah is likely to have closed his last World Cup in his career. Although he could not eliminate Messi from the tournament, he still left the United States in the position of an African football legend.
As for Messi, the journey to conquer another world championship is still continuing.
