The highly anticipated match between England and Argentina is finally set to take place at the World Cup, marking the first time the two teams have faced each other in a major tournament since Lionel Messi's international debut for Argentina.
Messi, who has never taken to the pitch against England, is relishing the opportunity to finally have a date with the Three Lions. 'The truth is, yes, it is always special to play against the big teams,' Messi said after the quarter-final win over Switzerland. 'It never happened to me against England, it's the first time, so it's going to be a special match, a World Cup semi-final.'
The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner added that he is looking forward to the challenge of playing against a powerhouse team like England. 'Obviously, everything I saw and remember is from videos and images that Argentinians constantly watch and relive [from 1986]. But I think this group is used to playing football matches regardless of the opponent.'
England and Argentina have a long and storied history of competing against each other in major tournaments. The last time the two teams met in a competitive match was at the 2002 World Cup, where England emerged victorious in the group stage game in Japan.
The most infamous game between the two teams came in the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup, where Diego Maradona scored a brace to dump England out of the tournament. Maradona's goals are unquestionably two of the most iconic ever scored in football history.
England lead the head-to-head record with four wins compared to Argentina's two, but this match promises to be a closely contested and highly intense battle between two of the world's top teams.
