Lionel Messi helps keep Argentina's World Cup hopes alive with magical moment against Mexico

Messi led Argentina's relief against Mexico 1:04

(CNN) --

Another magical Lionel Messi moment helped salvage Argentina's World Cup hopes in Qatar 2022 after La Albiceleste secured a much-needed win over Mexico.

The 2-0 victory was not showy, as Argentina struggled to create many clear chances against a stubborn Mexico team that offered very little threat with their offense.

Messi leaped into the fray after the hour to save his team, as he has done countless times before, finding the bottom edge of the net with a terrific shot from outside the box.

• Summary and result of Argentina 2 - Mexico 0 in the World Cup in Qatar 2022

Following the historic loss to Saudi Arabia in their opening Group C game, one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history, Argentina needed a win against Mexico to avoid having to beat Poland by three or more goals in the last group game and thus be able to qualify for the next phase.

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Although the victory against Mexico on Saturday was crucial, Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni would also have wanted to see a greatly improved performance as proof that the loss to Saudi Arabia was nothing more than a slip.

Especially because before the defeat in Qatar, Argentina had been undefeated for 36 games.

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However, that performance never materialized and Argentina looked stagnant for much of the game.

While Mexico was chasing a result, the spaces in their defense began to open up more regularly and Enzo Fernández secured the victory with a masterful high shot that the great Memo Ochoa could not save.

Nerves in the Argentine national team

Mexico started the game brightly and were the better team within the first 15 minutes, much to the delight of the many fans who traveled and sang in the stadium “olé” as the players passed through the Argentine midfield.

Judging by the noise that was made during the national anthems, it was clear that Mexico's fans outnumbered their Argentine counterparts in the stands.

The first half was uneventful as neither was able to create a single scoring chance.

For Argentina, this was a far cry from the performance many fans in Qatar and at home would have expected after that humiliating opening loss to Saudi Arabia.

Buenos Aires party for Argentine triumph in Qatar 2022 2:21

There seemed to be no cohesion and, more worryingly, no ideas on the best way to string together a handful of passes and start breaking down Mexico's defense.

The players seemed fearful of taking the ball and playing progressively, with Messi spending much of the half wandering the pitch away from the action.

With the last attack of the first half, Argentina finally created some space on the right side of Mexico's baseline, but Marcos Acuña's poor cross was easily cleared.

Coach Scaloni made five changes to the team that lost to Saudi Arabia in the hope of receiving a reaction from his players, but was left wanting after a lackluster first-half performance and many fouls from both teams.

Given the perilous position Argentina found themselves in, needing a win to have a real chance of qualifying for the round of 16, that first half was bewildering and infuriating in equal measure for La Albiceleste fans.

Messi's moment

Five minutes into the second half, Messi finally came to life.

The Argentina captain picked up a through ball and pushed his way into the Mexican defense, where he was brought down by Erick Gutierrez just outside the penalty area, also known as "Messi territory."

Lionel Messi opened the scoring for Argentina with a brilliant goal.

Credit: KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP/AFP via Getty Images

However, the subsequent free kick summed up Messi's game up to that point: well over the crossbar.

Although Argentina was disappointing, Mexico also deserved credit for stifling their opponent's attack and Messi in particular.

But such is the quality of Messi that even a split-second loss of concentration can prove fatal.

It was when the Argentine delivered the crucial blow just after the hour mark.

Ángel Di María, who had been one of Argentina's least effective players on the night, found Messi completely unmarked on the edge of the box.

It was the first time all night that he had found himself with any space and the captain only needed one chance, controlling the ball and firing a precise shot into the bottom corner.

And for all of Argentina's shortcomings, it never seemed likely that Mexico would return to the game with a goal.

With Mexico chasing play, Argentina began to look threatening and a counter-attack led to a penalty corner that Mexico failed to handle.

Enzo Fernández secured the victory for Argentina.

Credit: Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images

The ball found its way to Fernández, whose beautiful shot over Gutiérrez allowed him just enough space to evade the hands of Guillermo Ochoa.

In a game that lacked quality, two moments of individual brilliance were enough to propel Argentina's World Cup bid in Qatar.

Undoubtedly, there is still a lot of work to be done, but Scaloni will be relieved that his side will go into the final group game against Poland with fate in their own hands.

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Lionel Messi