Argentina needed extra time for the second time in three knockout stage games to beat Switzerland and advance to the semi finals.
It was yet another dramatic finish for the Albiceleste, who eventually scored two late goals to beat the Nati 3-1.
But the turning point of the whole game was Breel Embolo’s sending off, just moments after Switzerland equalised. They had all the momentum to their favour and arguably their best player threw it away in one dive.
Argentina needed a screamer and a counter attack while playing against ten men to win. And the most interesting tactical moments revolved around Switzerland dominating and finding their way back into the match. But the South Americans do deserve credit for going 1-0 up early.
How did Argentina vs Switzerland unfold?
Argentina’s underrated set pieces
Despite not creating any of their goals with intricate passing sequences or one-touch combinations, Argentina didn’t get an early lead by chance.
The Albiceleste are well positioned in many different rankings regarding corner-kick situations in the 2026 World Cup.
They had already saved the current world champions against Cape Verde in extra time. So it was no surprise to see them pop up again as an alternate attacking strategy.
Not just that, but their opening goal simply recreated the same corner they had just taken seconds before.
Near-post delivery from Lionel Messi to Alexis Mac Allister heading it across to the far corner. Embolo managed to deflect the first attempt, which led a second corner in a row, that led to the goal. And this type of cross was a pattern throughout the whole game.
Argentina struggled against Switzerland, but there was nothing random about them scoring from a corner. It was pure rehearsed movements that have already gotten them a lot of chances this tournament.
Switzerland take control
Switzerland found themselves behind for the first time in quite a while when Mac Allister scored. They hadn’t trailed in the World Cup until that moment – or even in the qualifiers, as a matter of fact.
But it made them dominate possession until half-time, which not only matches Murat Yakin’s preferred style but is also a scenario that leaves Lionel Scaloni’s men utterly uncomfortable.
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The Nati had a very effective formula for keeping the ball. They stepped up with their lines, pressed high up the pitch and forcede the Albiceleste to go long, something they try to avoid at almost all costs.
A total of 7.4% of Argentina’s passes against Switzerland were long – their highest percentage in a World Cup game this summer. Dibu Martinez had no real target for his long passes, so the Europeans quickly recovered possession and restarted again.
Unfortunately, it took them 67 minutes to get it going up front. Before that, in the few dangerous moments they had, players were struggling with the end product. Poor shot attempts, crosses, final passes, you name it.
It was also interesting (and confusing) how much focus Yakin was placing on the right-hand side early on.
And it was nothing new, considering they had already forced things with defensive-midfielder-turned-right-back Denis Zakaria overlapping down the flank. Tonight, he was joined by another defensive midfielder in Djibril Sow. Unsurprisingly, nothing special came out of that combination.
But the Swiss manager eventually came around and instructed his players to play more down the left. It’s also unsurprising that they managed to score the equaliser thanks to the other full-back-winger duo, Ricardo Rodriguez and Dan Ndoye.
There were also interesting moments when Switzerland gave Argentina a taste of their own medicine. Scaloni went from a 4-3-1-2 to a flat 4-4-2 out of possession after scoring. He also made his players work in a more man-oriented approach while also keeping a mostly zonal structure.
Sow left the right flank and tucked inside one or two times, overloading the middle while Granit Xhaka and Fabian Rieder occupied Leandro Paredes and Mac Allister, respectively. The Sevilla midfielder attempted a shot out of this action but they didn’t do it again for the rest of the game.
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Scaloni adapting
It lasted no longer than 20 minutes, so it’s hard to know whether it will show up again or not. But Argentina showed an interesting variable to their in-possession approach while ahead in the second half.
Lionel Scaloni famously likes to overload the centre of the pitch with high-quality players capable of playing in tight spaces. They have a number of technical midfielders and forwards who thrive off central combinations and constant movements.
But attacking down the middle in tight spaces also reduces the amount of ground the opponent has to cover.
The Albiceleste ranks first among all teams in the 2026 World Cup in percentage of touches in the central corridor (33%). But they gave up on it almost entirely for the first 20 minutes of the second half. Argentina started using the whole width of the pitch to move the ball around and make Switzerland work.
Scaloni often uses the wings more in second halves to exploit space and accelerate plays down the flanks. Nico Gonzalez is usually the first substitute to enter the games and holds width down the left. Tonight, the 48-year-old manager used wide play for a different reason.
In the end, the whole game changed when Embolo’s silly red card took the momentum Switzerland had and placed it back to Argentina’s favour.
But it’s still one more extra time the current champions had to go through and they already looked gassed in the second half. Luckily for them, England have had their fair share of dramatic endings and physical struggles. Who knows what that semi final is going to look like.
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