Lionel Messi will play one of the most special games of his career this Wednesday against England. The Argentine captain will face the English team for the first time in a World Cup, in the semifinal of the 2026 World Cup to be played in Atlanta.
At 39 years old, the forward arrives at this stage with a new challenge in his career: facing one of the few powers he has never encountered and taking one more step towards the two-time championship with Argentina.
“I played against everyone except England. They are a big team, a power, and it is always nice to play these types of games, especially in a World Cup semi-final,” Messi said after the 3-1 victory against Switzerland in the quarterfinals.
The duel between Argentina and England has a strong historical weight, marked especially by the remembered confrontation in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. On that occasion, the Albiceleste won 2-1 with the two iconic goals from Diego Armando Maradona—the “Hand of God” and the “Goal of the Century”—in a match that remained etched in the memory of world football.
Since then, both teams faced each other in the 1998 and 2002 World Cups, in addition to several friendlies, but Messi was never present in those duels.
A pending account
The Argentine star was close to playing his first game against England in November 2005, but an expulsion in his debut with the national team against Hungary prevented him from being called up for that match.
That match, played in Geneva, ended with an English victory 3-2, with goals from Wayne Rooney and a double from Michael Owen that turned the score around in the final minutes.
Messi witnessed that match from the stands, on one of the few occasions in which the Albiceleste faced England during his career.
Leadership and validity
The Argentine captain arrives at this semi-final as one of the great protagonists of the tournament. With eight goals, he shares the top of the scoring table with Kylian Mbappé and continues to expand a historical legacy that already has him as the top scorer in the history of the World Cups.
The match against England not only represents a new opportunity to get closer to the title, but also the possibility of playing in their third World Cup final, in what could be their last participation in football’s biggest event.
In Atlanta, Messi will face a pending challenge in his career, in a scenario that combines history, present and the ambition to continue making history with the Argentine team.