This Wednesday, July 15, the Argentine National Team will face England in the semifinals of the 2026 World Cup, a duel that not only has a great football history but also carries a strong symbolic background due to the claim over the Malvinas Islands. On the eve of a key match for the Albiceleste’s aspirations in the tournament, coach Lionel Scaloni stated that «it’s a football match, let’s not look for anything else,» trying not to divert attention from the sporting aspect for his players.
40 years ago, Carlos Salvador Bilardo and Diego Maradona, emblems of the consecration in the edition held in Mexico, made similar statements even though only four years had passed since the war conflict with the European power. The Argentine coach spoke with a journalist from El Gráfico shortly after the victory against Uruguay in the round of 16 and, when asked what he expected from the clash against the English team in the next stage, he commented: «Just now, in the press conference, someone asked me what could happen with England, considering the Malvinas war. I replied that we don’t think about that. Mixing football with that war would be a lack of respect for our dead who are buried on the islands.»
«If we face England, it will be a simple football match. Boca already played Aston Villa in the Gamper Cup in Barcelona, then Independiente beat Liverpool in the Intercontinental. Football is one thing, the Malvinas issue is another, each thing goes separately,» completed the ‘Narigón’, a stance very similar to the one Scaloni took before the match next Wednesday in the 2026 World Cup.
Maradona also followed Bilardo’s line ahead of the match against England when asked by the media: «I don’t talk about politics. I play football, not politics.» The number ’10’ of the ‘Albiceleste’ was the great figure in the subsequent 2-1 victory with two goals that were marked in football history: ‘The Hand of God’ and the ‘Goal of the Century’. Later, he did confess that he played against England «thinking about Malvinas» and said that «in our skin was the pain of all the kids who had died; it was crazy, but we felt it that way.»
Scaloni made it clear in the press conference that he did not like how the team played, which seemed somewhat imprecise and very passive against Switzerland until Breel Embolo’s expulsion at 72 minutes. Again, as against Cape Verde and Egypt, the midfield lacked intensity to recover the ball, watched too much how the opponent played it, and was sluggish in ball circulation. Therefore, modifications to the starting eleven are not ruled out, especially in the midfield. And the physical recoveries of the exhausted Romero and Paredes, among others, will also be crucial.
The semifinal match will be in Atlanta, United States, on Wednesday, July 15 at 4:00 PM Argentina time. Live TV broadcast will be on TyC Sports, Telefe, TV Pública, and DSports. Meanwhile, online streaming will be on MiTelefe, TyC Sports Play, DGO, Disney+, Paramount+, and TV Pública live on YouTube.
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Para mí, Scaloni está re vendido, diciendo que es solo fútbol, como si Malvinas no fuera una herida abierta. Los ingleses nos chorearon las islas y ahora nos quieren robar el partido. Yo creo que hay que ir con toda la bronca, la patria primero, a ganarles como sea, no jodamos.
Para mí esto es una traición a los veteranos. ¿Scaloni se piensa que con una frase se olvida todo? Los ingleses nos robaron las Malvinas y ahora quieren que juguemos como si nada. Yo creo que fútbol es guerra, y hay que ganarles para humillarlos. No me vengan con boludeces.