Thomas Tuchel is preparing for a pivotal World Cup semi-final as England gears up to face Argentina in Atlanta this Wednesday. This clash represents the sixth encounter between the two nations in the tournament, with their past three meetings overshadowed by the Falklands War in 1982.
Among these historic matchups, the quarter-finals in 1986 remain particularly infamous, marked by Diego Maradona’s controversial “Las Malvinas, por Diego and por la ultima de Leo” goal, which propelled Argentina to a 2-1 win on their journey to tournament victory. In 1998, Argentina triumphed once more, winning in a penalty shootout during the last 16, a game notably affected by David Beckham’s red card. However, Beckham later redeemed himself in 2002, converting a crucial penalty in a 1-0 group-stage victory. Earlier encounters saw England secure two wins: 3-1 in 1962 and 1-0 in the 1966 quarter-finals, where England ultimately captured the title.
Tuchel recognizes the resilience of the Argentine team, which is focused on defending the championship title they won in 2022. This goal holds special significance as they aim to provide Lionel Messi with a memorable send-off in what is likely to be his final World Cup appearance.
Following their 3-1 quarter-final victory over Switzerland, several Argentine players celebrated by singing a song in the locker room, evoking the Falklands War while pledging to win the World Cup “for the Falklands, for Diego and for Leo’s last”
When discussing the heightened stakes of the upcoming match, Tuchel remarked, “I know some of the players, I coached some of the players,”
He added, “I can sense it. You can see it. They have this kind of edge. You can sense it when they’re going a goal down, when matches are tight. “They’re almost the same group as four years ago. You can see the cohesion, you can see the sacrifice that they put into it. They believe in their style. And their style is a very emotional style. It was in Qatar and it is now. “And, of course, history … they are also fuelled by that. They are fuelled by history, it means a lot to them. So this is what we basically expect, and what we are up against. But we are also emotional, we have the grit, we have the mentality that it takes to go up against it. And we are ready for it.”
Tuchel further elaborated on the role of history in the match, commenting, “Our comments come from the same place – from being competitive and having the edge when competition is on,”
In light of his previous criticisms following England’s 2-1 extra-time victory over Norway, Tuchel clarified that no lingering tensions exist with Jude Bellingham. While Bellingham, who scored both goals in that match, was reportedly unhappy with Tuchel’s critique of the team’s technical performance, the manager emphasized their mutual competitive spirit.
“He [Bellingham] was just confronted with a critique of my side. I [also] called him a world-class player. I said he had world-class actions again to decide the match. I said the mentality is outstanding of this team. All of that was not part of the question. “I would maybe also bite back when I come from 120 minutes, score two goals and give literally everything that is in my body. It’s just a very normal reaction for a player of his mindset. So no problem. “I spoke to the whole team. We debriefed [the game]. I spoke to the whole team after in the dressing room, which was basically the same message. And I explained it again on Sunday evening to just move on forward. Then, in the [same] talk, we put on a new direction, a new head, which is semi-final and Argentina.” Tuchel explained. “There isn’t pressure on us,”
Tuchel continued, “What’s the pressure? The onus is on them. They’re the world champions. They need to come out, they need to defend their title. There’s no pressure on us at all.”
“We haven’t managed to watch any of their games,”
Defender Marc Guéhi contributed to the discussion by asserting that the pressure is firmly on Argentina to maintain their status as reigning champions. “I’m sure when we have the meeting tonight or tomorrow we’ll see some clips of them and see what we can do to overcome them.” he stated. “What’s the pressure? The onus is on them. They’re the world champions. They need to come out, they need to defend their title. There’s no pressure on us at all.”
Having recovered from a hamstring injury, Guéhi is set to continue his partnership with John Stones in central defense, while Ezri Konsa competes with Reece James for the right-back position. Konsa, who played as a full-back against Norway, expressed uncertainty regarding Argentina’s style of play.
“We haven’t managed to watch any of their games,” he noted. “I’m sure when we have the meeting tonight or tomorrow we’ll see some clips of them and see what we can do to overcome them.”
