Player Story: Lautaro Martínez - Argentina's late answer arrived too late

Lautaro Martínez's 2026 World Cup can be read through two late goals. He scored in the 120th minute against Switzerland to send Argentina into the semi-finals, then came on with eight minutes of normal time left against England and headed the winner in the 92nd. FIFA described him as the first striker Lionel Scaloni's staff trusted when this Argentina project began. By Atlanta, that trust had become something more useful: a match-saving intervention. 1 2

ESPN noted that Martínez became the first Argentine to score multiple World Cup goals as a substitute in one tournament. That is a remarkable record, but it also captures the tension in his campaign. He was not a specialist cameo artist. FIFA's pre-tournament profile had him coming off a season with 17 Serie A goals and a goal in Inter's Coppa Italia final, where he moved level with Hernán Crespo and Julio Cruz on three final goals. He arrived as a proven finisher, then found his biggest moments by waiting. 3 4

Argentina lost the final 1-0 to Spain after extra time. Their attack never produced a shot in regulation, and ESPN's post-tournament review reduced Scaloni's selection problem to a blunt choice between Julián Álvarez and Martínez. Martínez did not score in the final. The issue is not whether he can finish; the evidence says he can. It is whether Argentina can build enough of the match around him before it turns desperate. 5 6

That is why the story lingers. Martínez reached the final by turning the bench into a launchpad, but Argentina needed a starting striker to change the final before Spain took it away. His next chapter is not a redemption tale. It is a tactical demand: give El Toro more game to win, not just a few minutes to rescue.

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