England 1-2 Argentina: Late comeback, drama galore in epic World Cup semifinal

That is a real sickener for England, as Enzo Fernandez’s shot is a beauty from distance but England just haven’t been able to get out.

They sat deeper and deeper after going 1-0 up and Thomas Tuchel will be livid with the way his team have given up their lead.

Argentina are well in the ascendancy and it looks like this game is only going one way now.

The noise from the Argentina fans here is just bonkers. And that’s only the Argentinian media in the press box who are going wild!

Nine minutes of stoppage time to go.

Just before the hydration break Argentina thought they were level.

And they should have been.

Huge celebrations from the England fans inside here as Nico Gonzalez’s header from close range is pushed away by Jordan Pickford.

That is a really good save down low close to his body.

Brilliant stop.

England have led in a European Championship final and a World Cup semifinal in recent years but lost both.

Yes, they scored much earlier in both of those games but it’s the same principle.

Can they see this out? Will they be able to build on the lead Anthony Gordon gave them?

They are already dropping very deep and it has been all Argentina since England went 1-0 up.

Harry Kane and Co. need to control this final 30 minutes as best as they can, keep the ball and launch counters as Argentina get more desperate.

England’s fans are roaring their team on from behind the goal where they just scored and Argentina’s supporters are trying to get their team going.

A long ball forward is flicked on and Julian Alvarez is in.

After he beats Spence his first effort is pushed away by Pickford.

The ball drops to him again but Pickford tips another near post effort wide.

Argentina building some pressure but England deal with it as Bellingham defends Messi really well and gets plenty of love from his teammates.

Well, that was feisty and scrappy and nasty. Just as we expected.

England have looked more composed and been better on the ball.

Argentina have been launching into tackles galore and have only gone close once through Enzo Fernandez’s long-distance effort.

It’s all very tight and tense, and the atmosphere is great here inside the stadium in Atlanta.

England’s players don’t look rattled but Thomas Tuchel does look annoyed with the referee. How on earth was their only two yellow cards, one for each team, dished out in that first half?

19 fouls committed in that first half, seven by England and 12 by Argentina. There were 10 fouls committed in the first half of France vs Spain yesterday.

England are away on the break and Lisandro Martinez grabs the shirt of Morgan Rogers and stops him countering.

Lovely skill from Rogers to get away from Martinez initially.

One yellow card each now and it could be five each. At least.

That’s what type of game it has been. As the sound of the Argentine drum and band rumbles on in the stands, the action is pretty stop-start on the pitch.

No real rhythm about this game. But the songs and music in the stands is top notch.

The ball drops to Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez 25 yards out and he spanks a beauty towards the top corner that is swerving and bending.

Argentina’s fans at the opposite end of the stadium where I’m sat thought that was in.

The ball hit the pole behind the goal and came back out.

That is the closest Argentina have come so far.

Lionel Messi wriggles free from a couple of challenges but then gets stuck in a sandwich between Djed Spence and Elliot Anderson.

It all kicks off as Argentina and England players pile in.

Anderson is shown a yellow card but it was more of a foul from Spence if anything.

After Jude Bellingham was hacked down cynically, and no yellow card was dished out, Declan Rice whips in a free kick from a great spot on the inside left.

John Stones is free at the back post but his header is wide.

He was under severe pressure, but he got to it.

Stones knows that was a big chance and looks up to the sky.

England have looked more dangerous in attack on the few occasions the game has opened up.

As expected, so far it has been mostly a midfield scrap.

Argentina happy to snap in and launch counters and stretch the game. It’s all very tense here in Atlanta.

England have played slightly better but Argentina will be happy enough.

Thomas Tuchel is extremely passionate as he gets his message across to the England players at the hydration break.

Harry Kane looks on intently. Argentina’s players look pretty unfazed by everything going on.

This video sums up the first 25 or so minutes well...

As we approach the first hydration break there haven’t been any big chances for either team.

But England have been good on the ball and look dangerous when they get it out wide.

Anthony Gordon cut in from the left but Argentina crowded him out.

Then just now Reece James was played in superbly by Morgan Rogers but his cross was too close to Emiliano Martinez who gathered.

Does that count as a shot on target? Probably not. But that’s all we’ve had in terms of goalmouth action.

Well, it’s safe to say Argentina are getting away with a lot here.

American referee Ismail Elfath is yet to book anyone but Argentina have been so late in challenges and are hitting the deck all over the place as soon as an England player gets near them.

England are doing their best to stay calm but Argentina are basically refereeing this game.

Elfath has to get hold of this. It feels like an FA Cup third round game on a cold January night at a lower league ground with players allowed to rattle into challenges with no consequences.

So many late challenges from Argentina after the ball is gone already.

The referee has awarded plenty of free kicks to England and is counting all of the fouls.

Enzo Fernandez just left his arm on Elliot Anderson then.

This is getting spicy already. Argentina want to draw England in to this type of game.

England have to keep their cool.

What noise. What intensity. What drama.

And that’s just the singing of the national anthems!

The English national anthem is pretty much drowned out by the Argentina fans singing “who doesn’t jump is English” and jumping.

England fans return the favor during the Argentine anthem with boos.

It was really hard to hear both anthems. The noise is incredible here. Wow. Just wow.

We are ready to roll.

The nerves are building here in Atlanta.

I’ve been speaking to fans of both teams and they are both excited and also tense about how this game will play out.

Many believe it will be a single goal to decide it.

When you look at the teams on paper, there is very little to separate them.

Will it be Messi or Kane to decide it? Will it be the supporting cast of Alvarez or Bellingham?

Amazing noise inside the stadium as we approach kick off. Argentina’s fans are in great voice and they are hugely outnumbering the England fans.

E. Martinez - Molina, Romero, L. Martinez, Tagliafico - Paredes, Mac Allister, Fernandez - Simeone, Messi, Alvarez

Pickford - James, Stones, Guehi, Spence - Rice, Anderson, Bellingham - Rogers, Gordon, Kane

I’ve been lucky enough to be at a lot of World Cup games during this tournament, but the energy here is unmatched.

Fans of England and Argentina are equal parts nervous and excited and it was lovely to see many of them embracing one another in the streets and wishing each other good luck.

Argentina’s fans are definitely outnumbering England’s supporters here and there were loud boos in the stadium when England’s players were shown on the big screen arriving at the stadium.

This is going to be intense. Buckle up, folks. After all, it’s a World Cup semifinal!

Argentina’s group stage was perfect with three wins from three and Lionel Messi dazzling and breaking records.

But boy have the knockout rounds been tough.

They survived a huge scare against Cape Verde, and were then 2-0 down against Egypt late on but somehow surged back to win 3-2.

In the quarterfinal against Switzerland Julian Alvarez and Lautaro Martinez stepped up to help Messi out and Argentina will need plenty more of that today in Atlanta.

Group stage

Beat Algeria 3-0 in Kansas City

Beat Austria 2-0 in Dallas

Beat Jordan 3-1 in Dallas

Round of 32

Beat Cape Verde 3-2 in Miami

Round of 16

Beat Egypt 3-2 in Atlanta

Quarterfinals

Beat Switzerland 3-1 in Kansas City

This is all of the information you need to watch this massive World Cup semifinal live.

The stream link will be particularly helpful if you’re working today...

How to watch England vs Argentina live, stream link and start time

Kick off time: 3 pm ET Wednesday, July 15
Venue: Mercedes-Benz Stadium — Atlanta
TV Channel: Telemundo
Streaming: Stream live on Peacock, en Espanol

England have basically done what they had to do throughout this tournament. Just.

They won the group with minimum fuss as Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham have combined for 12 goals with six goals each. They have found a way to drag England through games.

Here’s a look at England’s journey at this World Cup.

Group stage
Beat Croatia 4-2 in Dallas
Drew Ghana 0-0 in Boston
Beat Panama 2-0 in New Jersey

Round of 32
Beat DR Congo 2-1 in Atlanta

Round of 16
Beat Mexico 3-2 in Mexico City

Quarterfinals
Beat Norway 2-1 in Miami

Both England and Argentina fans I spoke to want to see this match happen more often.

They haven’t played a game since 2005 in a friendly in Geneva. The last time they met at a World Cup was in the group stage in 2002.

Their most memorable was the infamous World Cup quarterfinal in Mexico City in 1986, when Diego Maradona pulled off the ‘Hand of God’ as Argentina went on to win the tournament.

Here is their head-to-head history, which England are on top in.

England vs Argentina head-to-head history

All time meetings: 14
England wins: 6
Argentina wins: 2
Draws: 6

Meetings in World Cup: 5
England wins: 3
Argentina wins: 1
Draws: 1

England total goals scored: 21
Argentina total goals scored: 15

Giving score predictions is always tough but it seems like it’s going to be extremely tight in Atlanta on Wednesday.

Both teams are struggling at the back and have incredible attackers, so you might think there will be lots of goals.

But these teams basically cancel the other out and it’s going to be down to whichever star forward shows up: Kane or Messi.

Check out our score predictions below, as we go into more detail in the video:

Joe Prince-Wright
England 2-1 Argentina (AET)

Nicholas Mendola
England 1-2 Argentina

Andy Edwards
England 2-1 Argentina

Of course, England and Argentina are huge rivals on and off the pitch.

But speaking to supporters of both nations around Atlanta yesterday it’s clear there is respect for their love of football.

“We have the same vibes and we understand football quite similarly,” Agustin Lopez, an Argentina fan wearing a Boca Juniors shirt said. “So I think it will be quite an interesting fun fight, but not a real fight, but in the singing and dancing. It will be a good atmosphere in the stadium.”

In a bar in downtown Atlanta Mariano Di Croce and Neil Smith got chatting, and it was a really heartwarming, almost cathartic experience for them to talk about their collective suffering watching their teams play.

“In Argentina, we have this saying where we say that Argentinians were born to suffer. So like this is almost like a self-fulfilling prophecy. Yeah, it’s really hard,” Mariano Di Croce laughed.

As Di Croce was saying this, Smith was smiling and nodding along knowingly.

As an England fan, he understands the suffering. Multiple heartbreaking defeats in semifinals and finals of recent major tournaments, and stretching back many decades, has taken its toll on England’s fans.

“The suffering for us has gone on for however long we keep getting close,” Smith said. “If you lose, then it’s on to the next one, and it’s still, you know, the same level of, um, optimism, let’s say! But something, somewhere around the experience at this World Cup is a little different.”