England and Argentina set to reignite their fierce feud in World Cup last-four clash

England and Argentina are set to clash in a highly anticipated World Cup semi-final on Wednesday, fueled by decades of intense rivalry, after they overcame Norway and Switzerland in the quarter-finals, respectively.

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Their upcoming match in Atlanta is crucial for Argentina, as a win is necessary to keep their hopes of becoming the first back-to-back World Cup champions since Brazil in 1962 alive, with Lionel Messi leading the charge.

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Meanwhile, England's key duo, Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane, must emerge victorious to have any chance of ending their 60-year drought without a major trophy.

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The winner of the England-Argentina match will face the victor of the France-Spain semi-final, scheduled to take place in Texas on Tuesday, in the final on July 19.

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The Argentina-England encounter comes 40 years after their seismic quarter-final match in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, where Argentina secured a 2-1 victory with two goals from Diego Maradona, including the infamous "Hand of God" and a dazzling solo effort.

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For Lionel Messi, the upcoming match will be his 206th appearance in an Albiceleste shirt, but his first-ever match against England, taking place against the backdrop of a lingering sovereignty dispute over the Falkland Islands, known as the Malvinas in Spanish.

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Britain had sent a military taskforce to reclaim the islands in 1982 after Argentine troops invaded, and the dispute still lingers, but Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni attempted to downplay the political aspect of the match, stating, "The message is this is a football game, that's what I can say."

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Scaloni's team had beaten Switzerland 3-1 in Kansas City on Saturday, thanks to extra-time goals from Julian Alvarez and Lautaro Martinez, and he emphasized that the focus should be on the football, saying, "It is a football game and we will be playing against a very tough opponent, they have an excellent coach and this is a football game and that's all."

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England coach Thomas Tuchel, on the other hand, was dissatisfied with his team's performance after they needed extra-time to defeat Norway 2-1 in Miami, with two goals from Jude Bellingham, and he warned that a significant improvement is necessary for them to reach the final.

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In the sweltering Florida heat and humidity, England's defense allowed Norway's Andreas Schjelderup to take the lead with a rasping shot from the left, but Bellingham equalized in first-half stoppage time after a goal kick from Norway's Orjan Nyland appeared to hit an overhead camera cable.

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Norway's players protested, but the goal stood, and Bellingham eventually scored the winner in extra-time, leading Tuchel to say, "We made life very, very difficult for ourselves today, the result is fantastic, the last four is amazing, but not happy with the performance, we were very lucky today."

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FIFA later stated that there was "no evidence" the ball had hit the cable before England's first goal, but Norway coach Stale Solbakken disagreed, saying, "That was unlucky for us, the ball fell straight down from the sky, so it changed its direction, but we can't do anything about that."

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Norway's forward Erling Haaland, who failed to score for the first time in 15 competitive games, reflected on his team's performance, saying, "How we put Norway on the map is maybe one thing that touches me the most, hopefully now we can establish something when it comes to Euros, World Cups and everything because our generation is amazing and also all this gives motivation to young people back in Norway that it's possible to play a big stage in the world with a Norwegian shirt."