Every major footballing nation has fallen beneath his blade, one by one hearing the hammer blow of judgement. All but one: England, the giant Lionel Messi will face for the first time on Wednesday in the semi-finals of the 2026 World Cup.
With the exception of the Three Lions, world champions in 1966, Argentina's skipper has faced and beaten every other nation to have lifted the World Cup. In some cases, he has shown them no mercy on more than one occasion.
But fate has never before pitted him against the inventors of football, a side with whom Argentina have forged one of the sport's great rivalries, intensified by Diego Maradona's famous "Hand of God" and "Goal of the Century" goals at the 1986 World Cup.
Forty years ago, Maradona inspired a 2-1 quarter-final victory over England in Mexico with two unforgettable goals: one scored with his fist, the other a masterpiece of footballing artistry.
"I've played against everyone except England, and it's special because they're a great national team, a powerhouse, and it's always nice to play against a side like that, especially in a World Cup semi-final," Messi said after Argentina's 3-1 extra-time victory over Switzerland in the quarter-finals of North America 2026 on Saturday.
Germany, the great tormentor
Argentina and England have not met at the World Cup since the group stage in South Korea and Japan 2002, a match the Europeans won 1-0 thanks to a David Beckham penalty.
At the time, Messi was about to turn 15 and had yet to make his debut for Argentina, not even at youth level.
Widely regarded as the greatest footballer of all time, the legendary number 10 made his senior debut for Argentina in 2005.
Since then, Germany, Brazil, Italy, France, Uruguay and Spain have all, to varying degrees, fallen to his guillotine.
Spain and France will contest the other semi-final on Tuesday in Arlington, near Dallas.
It is Germany who inflicted Messi's most painful World Cup defeats, knocking Argentina out in the quarter-finals in 2006 (with Messi left on the bench) and again in 2010, before beating them in the final of Brazil 2014.
The World Cup's all-time leading scorer with 21 goals eventually exacted revenge on the four-time world champions with two friendly victories: a 1-0 win in 2010 and a 3-1 triumph in 2012, in which he found the net.
As for Spain, champions in South Africa in 2010, Messi has faced them only in friendlies, with one victory apiece.
Symbolic triumphs
Against the other world champions, however, the record includes victories of enormous symbolic significance. Messi's Argentina defeated France in the unforgettable 2022 World Cup final in Qatar to secure the nation's third star, and overcame Italy in the 2022 Finalissima.
Against his greatest rivals, Brazil, Messi played in teams that conquered them in their own backyard at the Maracanã: first in the 2021 Copa América final, which brought the star his first major trophy with Argentina, and then with a 1-0 victory in November 2023 that ended Brazil's historic unbeaten home record in South American World Cup qualifying.
Against Argentina's other great regional rivals, Uruguay, Messi holds the upper hand across 13 meetings, with eight wins, three draws and two defeats. However, La Celeste knocked Argentina out on penalties in the quarter-finals of the 2011 Copa América on home soil.
Into the unknown
Against Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham's England in Atlanta, Messi will not only be venturing into the unknown but will also, on paper, be facing the strongest national side he has encountered in months.
Argentina arrived at what is expected to be their captain's sixth and final World Cup without having faced European opposition since the 2022 final against France, apart from a modest Iceland side in their final warm-up match before the tournament.
Instead, they came up against their South American rivals in World Cup qualifying and at the 2024 Copa América, which they won by defeating Colombia, while their friendlies were against lower-ranked opponents such as Angola, Puerto Rico, Mauritania, Honduras and Zambia.
In this year's tournament, Argentina have reached the last four despite progressing with considerable difficulty and relying heavily on their 39-year-old captain, who leads the tournament scoring charts with eight goals alongside Kylian Mbappé.
"This group has got people used to things that aren't normal. It's not easy to come from being world champions, from winning everything we've won, and then keep competing and continue performing at this level," Messi said after the Albiceleste victory over Switzerland.
– TIMES/AFP
Comments