Against Argentina, they went behind to a Messi goal, but came back to level at 1-1 and take the game to extra time. Then they went behind again - before a stunning strike from Sidny Lopes Cabral levelled once more. It was not to be though, with a cruel deflection off Diney Borges from Cristian Romero's header seeing Argentina through.

Despite defeat, Cape Verde manager Pedro Leitão Brito, also known as Bubista, was proud of a team which came within 10 minutes of forcing Argentina into a penalty shootout.

"We showed that we may be a small country but we can play against the best teams in the world," he said. "That's a reason for pride.

"We made history for our country. They can be proud for representing our country."