From the special reporter "Vijesti"
England and Argentina are the biggest football rivals, although they don't meet that often in the finals of major competitions (World Cups).
When Diego Armando Maradona knocked down Gordie Albion with a hand and a kick in the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, in one of the most anthological matches in the history of the game, he declared a few years later:
"They came to play for one life, and we for two...", alluding to the war the two countries had fought over the Falkland Islands just a few years earlier.
And David Beckham and Diego Simeone met a few days ago in Miami, a joint photo of the "old friends" thrilled the football masses.
In the 1998 World Cup round of 16 in France, Simeone faked a fierce kick from Beckham's boot, collapsing to the grass, and the legendary Albion captain received a straight red card. The "Gauchos" advanced on penalties after a grueling and dramatic match in Saint-Etienne, and Beckham became a hated figure in stadiums across England, except for his own Old Trafford.
He lifted the curse four years later, in Korea and Japan, when he scored a penalty to defeat Argentina (1:0) and send them home after the group stage.
The two great football nations met in the quarter-finals of the 1966 World Cup at the old Wembley, in front of 90 people, when the English won 1-0, advanced to the semi-finals, and shortly thereafter won the only major trophy that they have been calling for "to come home" for decades.
They also played four years earlier, in 1962 in Chile (3-1 to England) and that's it - five World Cup clashes that built a fierce rivalry, but only one in the 21st century, and that was 24 years ago.
When the "albiceleste" and "three lions" teams meet on Wednesday in Atlanta, in the semi-finals of the 23rd World Cup, with Leo Messi, Jude Bellingham, Emiliano Martinez and Harry Kane taking to the pitch of the magnificent arena in Georgia, a piece of immense history will also be played out, although some things will certainly not be repeated, nor remembered in the way that some others are remembered.
Diego Maradona wouldn't be able to fool the referee today and score a goal with the "hand of God", VAR would certainly overturn Diego Simeone's red card.
And 39-year-old Messi could repeat Maradona's slalom through the English defense only in theory, but another detail will mark the meeting of the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner with the national team of the country from the cradle of football.
There are few things Messi hasn't done or experienced on the football pitch. He's won everything with both club and country, played over 200 games for Argentina and scored 125 goals, but it seems a bit strange that he's never faced England before.
And a big question mark hung over that duel when the Swiss took the initiative in Kazan in the second half, tied the score at 1:1 and put pressure on the world champions, and then received a red card.
"Lionel Messi could not possibly end a career spanning more than 20 years without playing against the team that Argentina fans consider their biggest rival," wrote the BBC's South America correspondent, Tim Vickery.
Statistics show that Messi spends 63 percent of his time at this World Cup walking around the field, but even such a "pedestrian" is a huge danger for opposing defenses.
The English are afraid of Leo Messi, they are afraid of the Argentine "bad guys" throughout history, Maradona's shadow, Simeone's appearance in the central box, even though they also have the unsurpassed virtuoso Jude Bellingham, to whom they sing "Hey Jude, don't be afraid", just like the Beats sang.
This was evident on Saturday night in Miami, when thousands and thousands of English fans left the Hard Rock Arena and filled Miami clubs and beaches along South Florida (the popular South Beach), cheering enthusiastically for Switzerland.
They were also supported by many "locals" from the Caribbean, Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil - the Swiss have never had such support as on Saturday night.
Miami didn't sleep, but the English didn't get a bonus - if they want to reach the World Cup final, they will have to eliminate their arch-foe.
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