India, July 16 -- Lionel Messi was impressed with his teammates as defending champions Argentina defeated England to reach the 2026 FIFA World Cup final. The Argentina skipper didn't add to his goal tally, but ended up assisting twice for two late goals as the South Americans clinched a 2-1 victory.

Initially, England assumed that they were going through to the final after taking the lead in the 55th minute through Anthony Gordon. But Argentina didn't give up and kept on pressing for an equaliser.

In the 85th minute, with England hanging on, Messi took a short corner and then got the ball. He saw Enzo Fernandez lurking outside the opposition box and sent the ball to him. The midfielder curled in a screamer past goalkeeper Jordan Pickfor...