For a few perilous seconds, everyone in a green Mexico shirt lost track of Lionel Me si. The ball was to the right side of the field. He stood alone in the center, 25 yards removed from the goal. No El Tri defender noticed he was there. This is the same sort of high-risk behavior as climbing a sheer rock wall with no ropes.His teammate of nearly 15 years, his lifelong friend, Angel Di Maria, saw what was po sible in that moment. Jake Rudock Jersey He has witne sed Me sis mastery for so long. Di Marias pa s was nothing extraordinary. It didnt need to be. It just had to be on target and on pace, something that could be controlled before the defense recognized the calamity. And so it was.Me si touched the ball over to his rocket of a left leg, slammed the ball acro s the gra s at Lusail Stadium and eluded the reach of Mexico goalkeeper Memo Ochoa. Argentina had all it would need, although Enzo Fernandez took advantage of a second El Tri defensive lapse late in the game for .For every previous minute of Saturdays , Argentina faced the po sibility of elimination from the tournament. If they lost, they were out, with no chance to advance to the Round of 16.MORE For every previous second, Mexico stood exactly where it wanted to be, largely content to depart with a draw against the great Me si and an Argentine team ranked No. 3 in the world, then play for victory against Saudi Arabia in the third of three group games.A close soccer game allows for few errors, however.A soccer game against Me si demands perfection. , with a single point from tying Poland in the opener. They must beat the Saudis to avoid breaking their run of seven consecutive appearances in the World Cup knockout rounds.Mexico played the entire game with forward Chucky Lozano marooned in the attacking half of the field Isaiah Livers Jersey with virtually no support, reduced to taking on multiple defenders in the hope a teammate might arrive before he no longer could avoid turning over the ball or po sibly was fortunate enough to earn a corner kick by deflecting it off an opponent.Mexicos initial plan might have been damaged by a first-half injury to Andres Guardado. Merely by walking onto the field, Guardado, a 36-year-old midfielder, earned a distinction playing in five mens World Cups that put him into the same category as a few of the greatest ever players in world soccer (Me si, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lothar Matthaus) and in Mexico, as well (Rafa Marquez).Guardado was not there to make history, though, or friends.MORE: Inside the first three minutes, Guardado attacked Me si with a physical foul near midfield, on what was Me sis first real touch after kickoff. That was a declaration of intent, but 15 minutes later came Guardados proof John Wangler Jersey of commitment.In the 18th minute, the ball was loose in the air between Guardado and an Argentina player who raised a leg above his waist in an attempt to play it. Guardado noticed his opponent was not in control, and so he bent at the waist and leaned forward as if to head the ball.There seemed little doubt what was happening: Guardado wanted his opponent to kick him in the head and quite likely be red-carded and dismi sed.Is that crazy, or just the World Cup?MORE Guardado left early, though, wincing as he walked slowly to the sideline to be replaced by Erick Gutierrez, who made his World Cup debut as he entered.His inexperience became a factor early in the second half, when Me si got free on a dribble move toward the right and felt Gutierrez closing from behind. With traffic also in front, Me si reasoned it would be challenging for the official to see exactly what was transpiring, so as he made a move toward his left, Delano Hill Jersey he kicked himself in the achilles and tumbled to the ground. Gutierrez was whistled for a foul from behind and i sued a yellow card. But the free kick presented to Me si, from the 22-foot neighborhood he has converted on so many occasions in the past, floated vacantly over the cro sbar.There were boos from many Argentina fans in the audience. Can you imagine that? He rewarded them for their faithle sne s, soon enough.It was another El Tri veteran, though, 32-year-old Hector Herrera, who was nearest to Me si when he stationed himself above the box. Herrera, more than anyone, ought to have been aware of what was po sible in that circumstance. His late charge did nothing to di suade Me sis shot from beating Ochoa.Me si conjured his 2022 World Cup moment, right there.Because of that, there still may be many more.And because of that, this may Devin Bush Jersey be the shortest World Cup for Mexico in three decades.