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For a long time after the final whistle, Luis Chavez crouched on the field in anguish.

He had just scored in Mexico’s furious attempt to stay alive at the World Cup, but the 2-1 victory Wednesday over Saudi Arabia wasn’t enough. Because of Argentina’s 2-0 victory over Poland in a simultaneous match, Mexico failed to advance out of its group for the first time since 1978, Associated Press reported.

“We had a chance to qualify,” Chavez said glumly. “We didn’t achieve it.”

Mexico had reached the knockout round at the last seven World Cups, second only to Brazil, which has gone through to the round of 16 since 1986.

El Tri went into the match at Lusail Stadium needing both a victory and help from Poland playing across town against Argentina to advance in Group C. Argentina’s victory meant goal difference came into play — and Mexico didn’t have enough of them.

Henry Martin scored in the 48th minute to give El Tri hope, and the team’s chances got even better with Chavez’s goal on a free kick four minutes later.

Mexico tried desperately in the final 20 minutes to get another goal — including an effort by Uriel Antuna in the 87th minute that was ruled offside — but came up short.

“We needed one more goal. I didn’t know exactly what happened at the end,” said veteran Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, who was playing in his fifth World Cup. “For us, the object was to score three or four goals. It’s a shame.”

Salem Aldawsari scored in second-half stoppage time for Saudi Arabia, which was eliminated along with Mexico despite beating Argentina in its opening match.

Martin’s goal ended Mexico’s 431-minute scoring drought at the World Cup, dating back to their second group match at the 2018 tournament in Russia. It was the team’s longest ever stretch without a goal at the tournament.

Mexico opened the tournament in Qatar with a 0-0 draw against Poland and but fell 2-0 to Lionel Messi and Argentina.

Mexico hadn’t been eliminated from the group stage since the World Cup in Argentina 44 years ago. El Tri didn’t qualify for the 1982 World Cup in Spain, and was banned from the 1990 event in Italy for using overage players at an under-20 tournament, according to Associated Press.

“I must say that I assume all the responsibility for this massive failure,” Mexico coach Garardo “Tata” Martino said.

Mexico advanced to the round of 16 in its last seven appearances — but no further. El Tri came to Qatar looking to play in an elusive “quinto partido” — a fifth game — for the first time since Mexico hosted the tournament in 1986.

Saudi Arabia had one of the tournament’s biggest ever upsets ever when it beat Argentina 2-1. But the Green Falcons couldn’t pull off another surprise in its second match, a 2-0 loss to Poland.

The Saudis reached the round of 16 back in 1994, the team’s World Cup debut, but haven’t made it past the group stage since.

“Tonight it was difficult to breathe with the intensity Mexico put into the match,” Saudi Arabia coach Herve Renard said, Associated Press reported.

Many on the Saudi team were also part of the squad that went to the 2018 World Cup. But none play outside of their home country. Twelve players on the roster are with Al Hilal, which has won a record 18 Saudi league championships.

Rest easy, soccer fans. Lionel Messi will grace the World Cup stage at least one more time.

The Argentina great had a penalty saved but his team still beat Poland 2-0 Wednesday after second-half goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Julian Alvarez and advanced to the last 16, Associated Press reported.

After opening the World Cup with a shocking 2-1 loss to Saudi Arabia in one of biggest upsets in the tournament’s history, Argentina wound up finishing in first place in Group C and will next play Australia — a surprise qualifier for the knockout stage.

Messi rolls into Saturday’s game suddenly in a strong position in likely his final World Cup.

“Now another World Cup begins.” Messi said, “and hopefully we can continue to do what we did today.”

As for Poland, it was ultimately a happy night, too, because the team went through as the group’s second-place team — on goal difference ahead of Mexico — and will next play defending champion France.

“I’m upset that I missed the penalty, but the team came back stronger after my error,” he said.

A largely pro-Argentina crowd, waving flags and scarfs and beating drums behind both goals, had been sweeping Messi and his team along at the 44,000-seat Stadium 974 and they didn’t stop after the penalty. Within seconds, a chant of “MESSI! MESSI!” immediately reverberated around the venue in a bid to keep their idol’s head high.

And the roars were even louder at the start of the second half, first after Mac Allister’s goal — a scruffy finish from Nahuel Molina’s cut-back from the right — in the first minute and soon after as news filtered through that Mexico had taken the lead against Saudi Arabia, which started the day in third place.

Playing an Argentine-record 22nd World Cup game, Messi never stopped surging forward and he was a menace all game to Poland with his dribbling ability and vision. One 40-meter solo run saw him weave past three opponents, drift past another only to miskick as he took aim, according to Associated Press.

The match was billed as a head-to-head between Messi and Poland striker Robert Lewandowski, perhaps the best center forward in the world, but it proved to be a mismatch.

“If Messi played with us and Robert played for Argentina, Robert would have scored five goals,” Poland coach Czeslaw Michniewicz said. “Robert needs to be helped and the match was only played in our half.”

Messi wasn’t involved in either goal, though. For the second, Enzo Fernandez scooped a pass to Alvarez — starting ahead of regular striker Lautaro Martinez — and he took one touch before curling his shot into the top corner in the 67th minute.

Things couldn’t have gone better for Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni, who made more bold changes in bringing in Alvarez, Fernandez and Molina and seeing them play a part in the goals. Mac Allister, meanwhile, didn’t start against Saudi Arabia and has added energy in midfield in the two games since.

Australia upset Denmark 1-0 on Wednesday to qualify for the World Cup knockout phase for the first time in 16 years thanks to a fine solo goal from Mathew Leckie, Reuters reported.

Australia contained Denmark at the Al Janoub Stadium before stinging the Scandinavians on a counter-attack in the 60th minute when Leckie burst into space, wrong-footed defender Joakim Maehle and fired low past goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel.

Denmark coach Kasper Hjulmand brought on all the attacking firepower he could muster as he desperately sought the goals that have eluded his side in Qatar, according to Reuters.

But Australia held on to claim second place in Group D, behind France but ahead of Tunisia who were leading the French 1-0 in the dying stages of Wednesday's other game. Denmark finished bottom with one point.

Tunisians celebrated a historic but bittersweet World Cup victory over France on Wednesday as they defeated their former colonial power but still crashed out of a tournament marked by a remarkable string of Arab wins over soccer powerhouses, Reuters reported.

Car horns sounded in Tunis after the final whistle in Tunisia's 1-0 win as fans savoured the moment even though their side did not make it through to the last 16 of the Qatar World Cup, the first in an Arab country.

It was the third upset by an Arab country against heavily fancied opponents, but like Saudi Arabia's win over Argentina last week it was not enough to secure a place in the next round.

World Cup Chief Hassan Al-Thawadi said that 400 to 500 migrant workers died since Qatar won the right to host the World Cup. When asked during a TV interview the number of people who died while constructing the infrastructures of the tournament, he said that around 400 to 500 people lost their lives in the preparation leading up to the tournament that started from November 20. “I don’t have the exact figure but I think 400 to 500 people died while building World Cup facilities,” he said, adding, “One death is a death too many, it's plain and simple," he continued. “I think every year the health and safety standards on the sites are improving, at least on our sites, the World Cup sites, the ones that we’re responsible for, most definitely,” he further said. The World Cup has been shrouded in controversy ever since Qatar won the bid in December 2010. Last year, the Guardian had reported that 6,500 South Asian migrant workers have died in Qatar since the country was awarded the World Cup in 2010. most of whom were involved in low-wage, dangerous labor, often undertaken in extreme heat.

Former Chinese President Jiang Zemin died on Wednesday at the age of 96 of leukaemia and multiple organ failure, Chinese state media reported, according to Reuters.

Jiang died at 12:13 p.m. (0413 GMT) in his home city of Shanghai, the official Xinhua news agency said, publishing a letter to the Chinese people by the ruling Communist Party, parliament, Cabinet and the military announcing the death.

"Comrade Jiang Zemin's death is an incalculable loss to our Party and our military and our people of all ethnic groups," the letter read, saying the announcement was made with "profound grief".

It described "our beloved Comrade Jiang Zemin" as an outstanding leader of high prestige, a great Marxist, statesman, military strategist and diplomat and a long-tested communist fighter, Reuters reported.

Jiang was plucked from obscurity to head China's ruling Communist Party after the bloody Tiananmen crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in 1989, but broke the country out of its subsequent diplomatic isolation, mending fences with the United States and overseeing an unprecedented economic boom.

The Election Commission has decided not to conduct re-election in Syangja and Bajura. A meeting of the EC held on Wednesday decided not to conduct re-election in those places, instead issued a directive to start the vote counting. Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari said that the meeting has decided to start vote counting in Kaski-2 and Bajura. Following the dispute in the counting of the votes, re-election was demanded in those places. The Nepali Congress and CPN-UML have accused each other of capturing a booth in Bajura. Two persons had lost their lives following a clash between the cadres of Nepali Congress and UML in the voting center. The counting of votes was halted in Syangja after the candidates of other parties accused the Nepali Congress of carrying out irregularities during the vote counting process.

Rato Machhindranath, the god of rain, has been brought to Patan from Bungmati. Every year, the jatra which starts from Patan ends in Bungmati. There is a tradition to keep the Machhindranath in Patan for six months and Bangmati for six months.