Magical World Cup ride of Vozinha and Cape Verde ends after pushing Messi and Argentina to the brink

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — All that Vozinha originally wanted out of this World Cup was for his mother to see him play.

He got that — and so much more.

Cape Verde didn’t win a single match at this year’s World Cup, and somehow, that didn’t seem to matter. The African team’s debut on this stage was unforgettable, thanks largely to the 40-year-old goalkeeper who nearly engineered a soccer story that would have been counted among the greatest upsets in sports history.

Cape Verde’s magical ride ended Friday in the round of 32, with the Blue Sharks falling to Lionel Messi and defending World Cup champion Argentina — as most likely expected. Final score: Champions 3, Cinderella 2, in extra time — as probably very few expected.

And with that, the journey ended. There was a scoreless draw against Spain to open the tournament, with Vozinha leading the way, which led to the captivating tale surrounding the global collaborative effort it took to get his mother to the U.S. to watch matches in the group stage. There were two more dramatic draws that were good enough for Cape Verde to get out of the group stage and into the knockout round.

But it took a goal and an assist off a corner kick from Messi to save mighty Argentina, which got the game-winner midway through the second half of extra time, 2½ hours in real time after the David vs. Goliath showdown started. Goliath was pushed to the absolute brink, with Vozinha standing tall against the world’s top-ranked team – and the world’s best player – time and time again.

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There were no fewer than four elite saves by Vozinha against Messi alone in the final 60 minutes of the match.

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— A point-blank stop in the 63rd minute after Messi tried to power a right-footed shot past the keeper, who came off his line to cut down the angle and absorbed the shot with his body.

— A free kick from Messi in the 73rd seemed destined to curl into the right side of the net; Vozinha got just enough of an outstretched gloved hand on that one to knock it away to preserve what was then a 1-1 score.

— Messi went low with a free kick in injury time; Vozinha managed to see the ball through a wall of bodies and dropped to his knees to make a save.

— Late in the first 15-minute extra time period, Messi collected a deflected ball at the top of the penalty area and fired. Vozinha dove to his left, punching that one aside as well.

Cape Verde, the smallest nation in terms of land mass to make the World Cup and a nation with a population about 1% the size of Argentina’s, will get $11 million from FIFA for making it this far in the tournament.

Of course, the Blue Sharks got a lot more than money. They became known on soccer’s biggest stage.

See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here