Argentinas first World Cup 2026 knockout match pits the reigning champions against Cape Verde in Miami on Friday. Lionel Messi will be looking to continue his scintillating form, starting the contest as joint-top scorer at the finals alongside Frances Kylian Mbappe.Cape Verde have already caused a surprise by holding Spain to a 0-0 draw in their first-ever World Cup match, proceeding to finish the group stage unbeaten on five points.The winners of the tie will face Australia or Egypt, whose last-32 match kicks off four hours earlier, in the last 16 in Atlanta on Tuesday (17:00 BST). Table of ContentsWorld Cup 2026: Argentina confirmed team vs Cape VerdeWorld Cup 2026: Cape Verde full line up vs ArgentinaWhere to watch Argentina v Cape Verde: TV channel, live online streamsWorld Cup 2026: Argentina v Cape Verde statsWorld Cup 2026: Argentina confirmed team vs Cape VerdeArgentina starting XI: Emiliano Martinez, Lisandro Martinez, Cristian Romero, Facundo Medina, Nahuel Molina, Rodrigo De Paul, Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernandez, Lionel Messi, Thiago Almada, Lautaro MartinezArgentina substitutes: Juan Musso, Geronimo Rulli, Marcos Senesi, Nicolas Tagliafico, Gonzalo Montiel, Nicolas Otamendi, Leandro Paredes, Valentin Barco, Giovani Lo Celso, Exequiel Palacios, Nico Gonzalez, Julian Alvarez, Giuliano Simeone, Nico Paz, Jose Manuel LopezWorld Cup 2026: Cape Verde full line up vs ArgentinaCape Verde starting XI: Vozinha, Diney Borges, Pico Lopes, Sidny Lopes Cabral, Steven Moreira, Kevin Pina, Jovane Cabral, Deroy Duarte, Laros Duarte, Nuno Da Costa, Ryan MendesCape Verde substitutes: Marcio Rosa, Cj Dos Santos, Stopira, Logan Costa, Wagner Pina, Kelvin Pires, Joao Paulo, Jamiro Monteiro, Garry Rodrigues, Yannick Semedo, Willy Semedo, Telmo Arcanjo, Helio Varela, Gilson Benchimol, Dailon LivramentoWhere to watch Argentina v Cape Verde: TV channel, live online streamsKick-off on Friday is at 23:00 BST (18:00 ET / 15:00 PT). In the UK, live TV coverage is on ITV1.Streaming is via ITVs website and ITVX app, which is available on a vast variety of devices for viewing on the go.World Cup 2026: Argentina v Cape Verde statsLionel Messi has scored in each of his last seven World Cup appearances for Argentina, setting a new tournament recordThe eight-time Ballon dOr winner has 11 goals in total across that run (5 in the last 4 matches in Qatar 2022, 6 in three in 2026)Against Jordan on matchday three, Argentina became the second team to start two players aged at least 38 in a single World Cup edition, with Messi and Nicolas Otamendi following Brazils Thiago Silva and Dani Alves in 2022Nicolas Otamendis 17 World Cup appearances make the River Plate player Argentinas most-capped defender in the competition history, ahead of Oscar Ruggeri (16)Since the start of Qatar 2022, Argentina have been awarded seven penalties in 10 World Cup matchesOnly Spain, Mexico and Brazil bettered Cape Verdes record of two goals conceded during the group stage, with only La Roja and El Tri Spain keeping more clean sheets than the two they collectedCape Verde had 25.7% possession against Spain and were outshot 27 to six and 34.8% against Uruguay, with an attempts count of 12-17Against Saudi Arabia, however, they then had 51% of play, 15 attempts to their opponents seven and finished on an expected goals total of 1.39 xG to the Green Falcons 0.39They are the first debutants to go unbeaten in the group stage at the World Cup since Senegal in 2002Vozinha is the third goalkeeper in World Cup history to keep more than one clean sheet after turning 40, following Peter Shilton (three) and Dino Zoff (two) Topics 2026 FIFA World Cup Alexis Mac Allister Argentina National Football Team Cape Verde national football team Cristian Romero Emiliano Martinez Enzo Fernandez FIFA World Cup Julian Alvarez Lionel Messi Rodrigo de Paul World Cup World Cup 2026 Add us as a preferred source on Google If you enjoy reading this article, you can help support our independent football journalism by adding 101 Great Goals as a preferred source You Should Also Read BREAKING: Englands World Cup clash with Mexico set for earlier start on Sunday Mitch Fretton 3rd July, 2026 Argentina v Cape Verde: World Cup 2026 line-ups, stats and preview, TV channel, live online stream and prediction Ben Miller 3rd July, 2026 Colombia v Ghana: World Cup 2026 line-ups, stats and preview, TV channel, live online stream and prediction Ben Miller 3rd July, 2026 Australia v Egypt: World Cup 2026 line-ups, stats and preview, TV channel, live online stream and prediction Ben Miller 3rd July, 2026 World Cup 2026: Where to watch England games on TV, full BBC and ITV knockout stage listings, confirmed channels, schedule, live online streams, kick off times Ben Miller 3rd July, 2026 Cristiano Ronaldo: World Cup 2026 playing schedule, fixtures, kick off times, where to watch, confirmed news updates and full Portugal squad Ben Miller 3rd July, 2026
