Argentina produced its best performance of the World Cup so far when it needed it the most, as the South Americans defeated Poland 2-0 on Wednesday, a result that secured the top spot in Group C and a last 16 meeting with Australia.
It has already been a roller-coaster ride in Qatar for Argentina, which came into the tournament on the back of a 36-match unbeaten run under coach Lionel Scaloni, but looked rusty during a stunning opening 2-1 defeat to Saudi Arabia.
It immediately put the team's back against the wall in the pool, but Argentina did enough to see off Mexico 2-0 in another unconvincing display in their second match before looking much better against the Polish at Stadium 974, where they were roared on by the vast majority of the crowd of 44,089.