Rivaldo praises Messi despite Argentina rivalry

Rivaldo praises Messi despite Argentina rivalry highlights how the former Brazil star publicly set aside the traditional Argentina-Brazil rivalry to applaud Lionel Messi’s impact in Argentina’s 3-2 comeback win over Egypt. Rivaldo congratulated Argentina on reaching the quarterfinals after Tuesday’s match, where Messi again delivered after a first-half penalty was saved by Mostafa Shobeir. Trailing 2-0, the Argentina captain assisted Cristian Romero’s 79th-minute goal, then scored the equalizer four minutes later. The article notes Messi’s tournament tally rose to eight, moving him ahead of Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappé in the race for the Golden Boot. Enzo Fernández added the winning goal in stoppage time, and Argentina advanced to the last eight. Rivaldo also referenced Messi’s sixth World Cup at age 39 and praised the passion shown for the Argentina jersey.