The Swiss team started the match with an offensive initiative during the first minutes, and tried to threaten the Argentine goal through Dan Ndoye and Froller, but the Argentine defense intervened at the right time. Argentina responded quickly with a pass from Lionel Messi to Molina in the eighth minute, before the first goal came in the tenth minute.
The Argentine goal came from a corner kick taken by Messi, which reached Alexis McAllister, who rose and scored with his head, giving his country the early advantage.
After the goal, Argentina tried to capitalize on the lead, while Switzerland gradually began to enter the match. In the 30th minute, the Swiss team had a dangerous opportunity from a quick counter that reached Brielle Embolo, who was alone with goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, but the latter shone and saved the situation.
The first half remained poor offensively, despite some attempts from both sides. Switzerland tried from set pieces and corner kicks, while Argentina relied on Messi’s movements and rebounds, so the first half ended with Argentina leading 1-0.
At the beginning of the second half, Switzerland tried to press in search of an equaliser. In the 49th minute, a dangerous ball reached Embolo in an offside position, before Lisandro Martinez intervened and removed the danger. Argentina responded through Molina, who received a ball from Messi but preferred to shoot instead of passing to Julian Alvarez.
The Swiss pressure continued, and Embolo almost scored in the 59th minute with a header, but Emiliano Martinez intervened brilliantly. Minutes later, the Argentine goalkeeper saved his goal again from Dan Ndoye’s header after a cross from Rodriguez.
In the 67th minute, Switzerland succeeded in equalizing, after Froller passed a through ball to Dan Ndoye, who shot past Emiliano, making the score 1-1.
The 72nd minute witnessed an important turning point, after the referee returned to the video technology and canceled a foul that had been called in favor of Embolo, before giving the Swiss player a yellow card for acting. Since Embolo had been booked in the first half, the referee showed him a red card.
After the expulsion, Argentina pressed hard in the face of a clear Swiss retreat. Messi almost scored in the 84th minute after a ball from Paredes, but he fell offside, then McAllister missed a dangerous opportunity in the 89th minute after he put a cross over the goal. In the 90+9 minute, goalkeeper Gregor Koppel blocked a dangerous attempt from Lisandro Martinez after a corner kick taken by Messi, ending regular time in a 1-1 draw.
In the first extra half, Argentina continued its attempts. Almada shot a dangerous ball in the 92nd minute, but Coppell blocked it. Then he tried again in the 95th minute, but his ball went into the side netting. On the other hand, Xhaka tried from a long shot that passed over Emiliano’s goal.
At the start of the second extra period, Switzerland tried to surprise them with a free kick in the 106th minute, but Lisandro intervened and removed the danger. Then came the decisive moment in the 113th minute, when Julian Alvarez scored a wonderful goal with a curling shot past Copil, giving Argentina a 2-1 lead.
Switzerland tried to come back in the final minutes, but Emiliano Martinez continued his strong presence, especially in the 116th minute after he successfully came out in front of a dangerous ball from Froller.
In the 120th minute, Messi almost ended the match with a quick rebound, but the Swiss defense blocked his shot. Two minutes later, Lautaro Martinez settled the confrontation by scoring the third goal, after he followed a returning ball from the Swiss goalkeeper following an intervention in front of Almada, and put it into the net.
The match ended with Argentina winning 3-1, continuing the campaign to defend its title and reaching the semi-finals after a grueling confrontation, which was decided in extra time against a Swiss team that held out for a long time despite the numerical deficiency.
