Argentina booked their place in the FIFA World Cup semi-finals after Julian Alvarez inspired a 3-1 extra-time victory over 10-man Switzerland in a dramatic quarter-final in Kansas City on Saturday.

Alvarez scored the decisive goal in the 112th minute with a superb curling finish into the top corner before Lautaro Martinez added a third in stoppage time to seal Argentina’s victory.

The defending champions had already survived two exhausting knockout matches, beating Cape Verde 3-2 after extra time in the Round of 32 and recovering from behind to defeat Egypt 3-2 in the previous round.

After the match, Alvarez said Argentina had once again shown resilience under pressure.

“Obviously you have to suffer — you have to know how to suffer,” he said after winning the Player of the Match award.

“The opponents we’ve faced have played very well. There are things we can improve, but in a World Cup every team is strong.”

Argentina made a bright start when Alexis Mac Allister headed Lionel Messi’s corner into the net in the 10th minute to give his side the lead and hand Switzerland their first deficit of the tournament.

Switzerland responded strongly despite missing injured top scorer Johan Manzambi. The European side created several chances after the break and forced goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez into a series of important saves.

Dan Ndoye eventually levelled the score in the 67th minute after combining with Ricardo Rodriguez before calmly finishing through Martinez’s legs.

The match changed moments later when referee officials reviewed an incident through VAR. The referee cancelled an initial yellow card shown to Argentina’s Leandro Paredes and instead issued a second yellow card to Swiss striker Breel Embolo for simulation, reducing Switzerland to 10 players.

The decision left Embolo in tears and frustrated Switzerland coach Murat Yakin.

“We were punished because of a rule that, in my opinion, is completely unacceptable,” Yakin said. “This rule destroyed our game today.”

Despite playing with 10 men, Switzerland defended bravely and pushed the match into extra time.

Argentina increased the pressure as thousands of supporters turned Arrowhead Stadium into a sea of blue and white. Lionel Messi almost won the game before extra time ended, but his powerful effort drifted narrowly wide.

Alvarez finally broke Switzerland’s resistance in the 112th minute with a brilliant curling strike before Lautaro Martinez wrapped up the victory with a late goal.

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni admitted his team had endured another difficult knockout match.

“We had to suffer a lot. We knew they were a physical team and that gave us a lot of trouble,” Scaloni said.

“Today we had luck on our side because one of their players was sent off. We could have played better, but reaching the semi-finals is a big achievement.”

The final whistle sparked emotional celebrations among Argentina’s players and supporters, with Messi celebrating in front of the fans after guiding the defending champions into another World Cup semi-final.