If you are an FC Barcelona fan, it's time to get ready for the much-awaited Spain vs Argentina final, where Lamine Yamal will face Lionel Messi for the first time in history. This meeting was scheduled as the Finalissima on March 27, 2026, which unfortunately got cancelled. However, fate has different plans as the current star of FC Barcelona will be playing against the legend of Barça.
Argentina were the favorite against England in the second semifinal of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. However, they were not able to score against England's solid defense. It was a close encounter between two of the biggest teams in the World Cup. England might not have won a huge tournament in the last six decades, but they always come close and miss it by an inch.
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Messi's late magic powers Argentina past England
The highly charged match with an electric crowd started at 3 pm at Atlanta Stadium, Georgia. For moments, it looked as if England was all set to repeat the 1966 World Cup history: the perfect passes, decent possession, and good defense. When the first half was over, scores were 0-0, and the game could have gone either way.
English fans were waiting for the moment, and the moment arrived when Morgan Rogers' beautiful cross in the 55th minute led to an amazing goal by Anthony Gordon's clever tap. The 1-0 lead by England built some hopes for the FIFA World Cup final. Harry Kane's men were eyeing history by entering the final after a 60-year drought.
Argentina were not succumbing to pressure, maintaining possession, creating chances, but nothing was converting into a goal. Critics argue that England stopped creating chances after a 1-0 lead and focused entirely on defending, which is not the best strategy against teams like France, Spain or Argentina. As a result, Argentina played like beasts in the last minutes of the game.
In the last moments of the game, Scaloni replaced Rodrigo De Paul with Giuliano Simeone and Nicolás Tagliafico with Lautaro Martínez to reshape the midfield and defense. Argentina were seeking the moment, and it came in the 85th minute, when Lionel Messi assisted Enzo Fernández with a perfectly weighted pass to score an equalizer. The pressure shifted towards England to score even more or at least take the game to extra time.
The regulated time was over, and the referee gave a stoppage time of 9 minutes. However, it took less than two minutes for Messi to create his magic again, and he delivered a sublime cross over a crowded penalty area, where Lautaro Martínez headed a historic match-winning goal in the 92nd minute. With these two assists, Messi solidifies his status as the player with the most assists in FIFA World Cup history.
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A rivalry born in controversy and conflict
Argentina vs England is a match deeply rooted in history and politics. They faced each other in the 2002 World Cup group stage, where England won 1-0 against Argentina. In their last six meetings at the FIFA World Cup, both Argentina and England have won three times. It includes the remarkable 1986 FIFA World Cup and England's 1966 victory over Argentina in the quarterfinals.
The 1966 World Cup match is remembered in Argentina as "el robo del siglo", which means "The theft of the century". It was because Antonio Rattín was controversially sent off, and Alf Ramsey of England described South Americans as "animals". By 1986, these grudges became more strong as the Falklands War happened between the countries, which resulted in the deaths of 600+ Argentine and 250+ British military personnel.
Four years after the 1982 war, Argentina faced England in the quarterfinal, where Diego Maradona scored two infamous goals. While one goal was called the "Hand of God", the other one was labeled as the "Goal of the Century". With a 2-1 victory over England, Argentina not only entered the World Cup semifinal but also ended up lifting their second World Cup trophy.
The animosity resurfaced in France in 1998, where they met again in the round-of-16, which ended as a 2-2 draw before Argentina won 4-3 on penalties. Later in 2002, England won 1-0 after a long drought against the Argentina national football team in the World Cup. The rivalry continued apart from World Cups when England beat Argentina 3-2 in a friendly in 2005, and that was their last meeting before the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
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Argentina vs Spain: When an Idol Meets His Follower
When Lionel Messi was 19, he met the 5-month-old Lamine Yamal during a UNICEF charity photoshoot in 2007. Nobody would have imagined that the boy in the picture would become FC Barcelona and Spain's next biggest sensation. It's a "Circle of Life" moment for fans as Lamine is also a 19-year-old, which is a beautiful coincidence.
Based on Google stats, Spain has 42% chances of lifting the trophy in a regulated time, whereas Argentina has a 27% chance. However, 31% chances are that the match will go into extra time. As young Spain faces defending Champions "Argentina", they will have to keep the posession somehow and get a better lead. With the strongest defense, Spain is unlike Egypt or England. However, Argentina relies on moments; if they get space, they'll score.
While Spain wants to repeat 2010, when global media wrote them off for their opening game's 1-0 loss against Switzerland, and this year as well, they were heavily criticized for not winning against Cabo Verde until fans realized that Cabo Verde was not a bad team. Argentina is eyeing defending the World Cup to help Messi surpass the legacy of Diego Maradona by winning two World Cups as a captain.
The battle would be between Spain's tactics and techniques against Argentina's resilience, who have made three consecutive comebacks in the knockout games. Critics may argue about referee decisions, but when a team leading by 1-0 loses the game, it's more about poor defense and lack of vision. The weakest link for Argentina at the moment is their defensive flanks, which are conceding goals in most matches.
Spain would be riding high on confidence as they've already knocked out the strongest contenders, France, by 2-0 in the semifinal. Now, they'd be hoping to repeat a similar performance against the Argentine side. While Argentina are playing their third World Cup final in 12 years, Spain hasn't been into World Cup final since 2010. It would be interesting to watch how Spain stops Messi's magic.
