This World Cup Is Delivering Non-Stop Thrills and Jaw-Dropping Moments!

Good morning, I'm Dan Gartland. I'm not sure what I'll do with myself today without any World Cup matches to follow. 

In today's SI:AM: 
🇦🇷 Argentina survives
⚽ Quarterfinals set
🏀 WNBA power rankings

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And then there were eight

Let me ask you an impossible question: What has been the best match at this World Cup? Argentina-Cabo Verde? Belgium-Senegal? England-Mexico? Brazil-Norway? Algeria-Austria? 

Each has a strong case, but the answer just might be the extraordinary comeback Argentina pulled off yesterday afternoon against Egypt. Lionel Messi's squad found themselves down 2–0 with barely 20 minutes remaining but kept their World Cup title defense alive by netting two rapid goals to level the score, before a stoppage-time winner sealed the deal. (Messi netted the second in the 83rd minute with a sublime one-touch finish.)

For the reigning champions to struggle so badly against a side made up largely of players from Egypt's domestic league was truly shocking. Egypt looked like the superior team for long stretches and might well have caused the upset were it not for a pair of contentious refereeing calls. First, Egypt had a goal ruled out by VAR in the 58th minute for a foul committed at the opposite end of the pitch. Then, moments before Enzo Fernández's decisive strike, Egypt felt a foul should have been awarded against Mohamed Salah inside the box, yet no VAR review was initiated. 

Egypt's head coach was blunt in his post-match assessment. 

"It's all about money," Hossam Hassan said. "They want Messi to remain in the competition. In football, a lot happens behind the scenes due to vested interests. What occurred was unjust. Egypt deserved to advance. We were the better side."

Egypt has every reason to feel aggrieved, but from a neutral standpoint (or from the perspective of someone happy to see more Messi), the match was the latest in a string of extraordinary knockout stage encounters. Fernández's winner was the 10th elimination match of this tournament to feature a tying or winning goal scored in the 85th minute or beyond. That tally doesn't even account for the three matches decided by penalty shootouts, or Norway's victory over Brazil in which Erling Haaland's 90th-minute goal proved the difference after Brazil were awarded a penalty in the 10th minute of stoppage time.

The expanded tournament format and the addition of the round of 32 created more opportunities for late knockout drama (16 extra matches, to be precise), but the sheer volume of drama we've witnessed so far remains extraordinary. Only three knockout matches in the 2022 World Cup featured a winning or tying goal after the 85th minute. There were four in 2018. With eight matches still to come in this year's tournament, there are eight more chances to witness something truly special. 

The expanded tournament field has been an undeniable triumph. Before the competition began, I was quick to dismiss the 48-team format as little more than another FIFA money-making scheme. Make no mistake: FIFA's main motivation was to line its coffers by selling more tickets and sponsorship deals. Yet the quality of football has not suffered in the slightest from the expanded field. 

Yesterday brought the round of 16 to a close, and the eight sides that progressed to the quarterfinals are largely heavyweights. The four quarterfinal pairings are all mouth-watering in their own right—France vs. Morocco in a replay of their 2022 semifinal clash, long-suffering England vs. the unstoppable Erling Haaland and Norway, Spain taking on a Belgium side in the twilight of its golden generation, and the great Lionel Messi squaring off against Switzerland—but they'll have a tough act to follow after such a breathtaking start to the knockout rounds. 

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The top five…

… things I caught yesterday: 
5. Haissem Hassan's run on Egypt's goal that was subsequently overturned by VAR. 
4. Royals utility player Tyler Tolbert's 12th consecutive plate appearance with a hit, equaling an MLB record. 
3. The Royals' comically poor defense that allowed the Mets to score three runs on a weak dribbler back to the mound. (Kansas City went on to win by the absurd scoreline of 16–12.)
2. Shohei Ohtani's 300th career home run.
1. Leandro Paredes's tackle to snuff out a 3-on-2 breakaway for Egypt in the 91st minute.

Dan Gartland authors Sports Illustrated's flagship daily newsletter, SI:AM, and serves as host of the "Stadium Wonders" video series. He joined the SI team in 2014, after previously being published on Deadspin and Slate. Gartland, a Fordham University graduate, is a former Sports Jeopardy! champion (Season 1, Episode 5).