Argentina and Lionel Messi defeated Poland 2-0 in their World Cup group game in Doha.
A 2-0 victory for Argentina over Poland thanks to goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Julian Alvarez; Lionel Messi shined but missed a first-half penalty; Lewandowski and Poland went to the round of 16 ahead of Mexico on goal differential.
Argentina defeated Poland 2-0 to secure first place in Group C despite Lionel Messi's missed penalty. On a dramatic evening, Poland advanced to the round of 16 ahead of Mexico due to goal differential.
Lewandowski had barely touched the ball in a game that was completely dominated by Argentina.
A second-place finish would have put Argentina against France in the round of 16, but goals from Alexis Mac Allister (46’) and Julian Alvarez (67’), scored after Wojciech Szczesny had saved a disputed Messi penalty, gave Argentina a well-deserved victory and moved them up to face Australia.
Czeslaw Michniewicz's team was sensationally poised to advance on fair play points before Saudi Arabia's stoppage-time goal in their 2-1 loss to Mexico put the Poles through on goal difference. As a result, Poland's qualification was in the balance until the very end.
Jakub Kiwor needed to clear the goal line at stoppage time to keep the deficit at two as Poland played out the last minutes of their match knowing that another goal for either Argentina or Mexico would eliminate them from the competition.
The Poles did just enough to secure a matchup with the defending champions France on Sunday in what will be their first World Cup knockout game since 1986, despite a poor performance from Poland in which Robert Lewandowski did not even record a shot. Mexico ultimately won by just one goal, and despite Mexico's performance, which included them only scoring one goal.
Messi, clearly determined to build on his game-winning performance against Mexico following the shocking loss to Saudi Arabia, forced a deft save from Szczesny with a powerful early effort. Argentina completely controlled the game from the outset.
The 35-year-old was also Argentina's major source of creative energy; he frequently appeared in midfield areas and found teammates in risky situations, but the finishing was never quite there.
Alvarez, who was chosen to start up front in lieu of Lautaro Martinez, missed a great chance after a Molina cut-back. A Poland defender blocked his low effort when he should have scored, and Marcos Acuna then narrowly missed with the follow-up.
Acuna missed two additional opportunities that came from Messi passes, and Alvarez was denied twice more in the opening period as well. The Manchester City striker had a one-on-one attempt stopped by Szczesny and another attempt parried.
Argentina's biggest opportunity, however, was lost by Messi, whose penalty kick was well saved by Szczesny after a VAR review that found the Poland goalkeeper had unfairly fouled the Paris Saint-Germain striker as he headed a cross wide.
Michal Skoras and Jakub Kaminski were sent in for the solitary Lewandowksi by Poland manager Michniewicz at halftime in an effort to alter the outcome of the match, but Argentina's opener came within a minute.
Julian Alvarez doubled Argentina's advantage over Poland as Brighton's Mac Allister scored the first, finding the bottom corner with a scuffed finish from Nahuel Molina's precise cut-back for his first international goal.
Kamil Glik headed a rare Poland chance wide from a free-kick soon afterwards, but it was all Argentina otherwise, with Mac Allister threatening a second before Alvarez finally got his goal, collecting an Enzo Fernandez pass and curling home brilliantly.
Poland were hugely fortunate not to concede again, with Sczesny denying the brilliant Messi, who put on a passing masterclass as he continued his chase for the one trophy that has eluded him.
Poland players celebrated after advancing to the last 16 of the World Cup despite being beaten by Argentina.
Alvarez and the substitutes Martinez and Nicolas Tagliafico also had additional chances, with the latter's shot in the third minute of stoppage time necessitating a remarkable goalline clearing from Kiwior.
Poland eventually managed to hold on, earning a spot in the round of 16 that their performance hardly deserved. If they want to stand a chance against France, they will need to significantly improve.
What does the outcome imply?
With six points from their three games, Argentina advances as the Group C champion, followed by Poland with four points in second place, and Mexico, which along with Saudi Arabia exits the competition on goal differential.
Argentina will now play Australia in their round of 16 matchup on Saturday, kicking off at 7pm, while Poland come up against Group D winners France on Sunday, kicking off at 3pm.