​Argentina keeps getting knocked down to the mat at the 2026 World Cup. And it keeps getting up, seemingly only getting stronger with every victory.After another thrilling, dramatic win over England in the World Cup semifinals on Wednesday, that is now three straight skin-of-their-teeth knockout victories for the reigning World Cup champions. At this point, Argentina playing through the whistle and making every minute count is the baseline expectation as it tries to become the first repeat men’s World Cup champion in over six decades.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementWith the World Cup Final against Spain looming on Sunday, let’s get a sense of Argentina’s dramatic journey to the biggest game in sports by ranking its three bonkers knockout wins along the way.No one expected a country like Cape Verde, making its first-ever World Cup appearance, to push the reigning World Cup champions to their limits. But that’s exactly what the underdog did in an instant classic Round of 32 match. Despite early Lionel Messi brilliance, Vozinha’s stellar goalkeeping for Cape Verde kept the nation alive long enough to find not one but two equalizers, including this stunning goal in extra time from Sidny Lopes Cabral:It took what became an own goal off of Cape Verde for Argentina to survive and advance to the next round. That is unbelievable to consider in hindsight:Four rounds later, it’s still easy to see Cape Verde as one of the stories of this entire tournament.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementEntering these semifinals, most already considered Argentina and England one of the best rivalries in the history of the men’s World Cup. Almost every time these two countries meet in this tournament, the match turns into an instant classic. The latest chapter unsurprisingly did not disappoint.After England took a 1-0 lead off a beautiful Anthony Gordon goal early in the second half, the Three Lions tried to “park the bus” and sit back on defense. This was a massive tactical mistake. A relentless Argentina peppered England with high-danger chances while hemming its international rival on its end of the field for almost the entire second half.It was only a matter of time before Enzo Fernández would launch a rocket of an equalizer in the late stages of the match:Then, in stoppage time, the magic man, Lionel Messi, did what he does best. He fired off an impossible pass from a ridiculous angle that gave Lautaro Martínez a game-winning goal for the ages:To say this was a dagger in the collective heart of England would likely be an understatement.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementOf all of Argentina’s knockout wins to reach the 2026 World Cup Final, it actually came the closest to falling short against Egypt. Through 67 minutes, the Egyptians held what sure felt like a decisive 2-0 lead, even though VAR had screwed them out of another goal. But as the Argentinians have shown us all tournament, they would not go quietly into that good night.All told, Argentina sc