12 June 2002 · Miyagi
Sweden 1 — 1 Argentina
The favorite that ran out of time.
Argentina arrived as one of the world's best teams. Three matches later, a late equalizer left it one goal short of the second round.
Marcelo Bielsa's side had dominated South American qualifying and travelled with depth, speed, and a clear method. Expectation turned every minute against Sweden into a measure of how quickly certainty can disappear.
Expectation meets a small margin
Argentina beat Nigeria in its opening match, then lost 1–0 to England. It entered the final group game needing to defeat Sweden. The task was simple to state and increasingly difficult to perform.
Argentina controlled the ball and attacked repeatedly, but Sweden defended its penalty area with discipline. Just before the hour, Anders Svensson curled a free kick beyond Pablo Cavallero. Now Argentina needed two goals.
An equalizer without rescue
Ariel Ortega won a late penalty. Magnus Hedman saved his kick, and Hernán Crespo scored the rebound. Argentina drove forward through the final minutes and could not find another. The draw sent Sweden and England through.
Elimination
Argentina's qualifying campaign had produced 13 wins in 18 matches, 42 goals, and one defeat. At the World Cup, three group matches produced four points and two goals. Bielsa remained in charge and later won Olympic gold in 2004.
The players who left Miyagi had entered the tournament among the favorites. Their exit became one of the sharpest reversals in Argentina's World Cup history.