Argentina-England: a final before the final

The meeting between ARGENTINA and ENGLAND is without doubt the clash of the second round. At this stage of the tournament, the level of the teams is equal but a match between two past world champions will certainly carry a great deal of importance. In addition to their rich footballing history, even if some people say that the past is forgotten, the politics during the Falklands war and the bitter memory left over from 1986 World Cup in MEXICO where Maradona’s “hand of God” qualified ARGENTINA are still remembered.

Let’s forget all these differences and get on with the game. Regularly present at the World Cup finals (11 times for ARGENTINA, 9 for ENGLAND), the two teams have come to France with real ambition.

On the one hand, ARGENTINA and Daniel PASSARELLA were criticized for bad results and his dictator’s attitude, in particular, he forbid his players to keep their hair long. He has, nonetheless, been able to perfectly blend players from the former generation such as goal keeper German BURGOS (12), Diego SIMEONE (8) or the eternal “Batigol”, Gabriel BATISTUTA (9) with younger players like Javier ZANETTI (22), Marcello GALLARDO (20), Juan VERON (11) and the new “goleador” and game maker, Ariel ORTEGA (10).

The good atmosphere has allowed ARGENTINA to finish top of group H with 9 points (along with France, the only team to have won all their group matches) and Gabriel BATISTUTA to regain his goal scoring ability. He won his team position just before the tournament and is actually the second highest scorer of this World Cup with 4 goals. He has proved to his coach that he is an exceptional player who can give his team the leading edge. When he lacks creativity, he can count on his young teammate Ariel ORTEGA, the scorer of two goals against South Africa, to take advantage of every opportunity.

On the other hand, ENGLAND are looking for new glory: absent from the last World Cup in USA, the English are on a high, 32 years after the great Bobby CHARLTON led his team to the 1966 trophy. After a slightly hesitant start, their battle through the qualifiers reassured them, when they clinched their ticket for France 98 in Rome, against the formidable Italian “Squadra azzura”. With their genius coach Glenn HODDLE, ENGLAND mean to do as well as they did in “Italia” ’90 where they reached the semi-finals. Despite a less than perfect first round, marked by their surprise defeat at the hands of ROMANIA, the English will be talented enough to make their “Italian realism” pay. The English do indeed have a solid defence and an aggressive midfield, England’s strong point remains their attackers with heavyweights like Alan SHEARER (9), Teddy SHERINGHAM (10), not forgetting the English revelation of the season, Michael OWEN (20), aged eighteen. This clash between two football giants promises to be real football entertainment on Tuesday 30 June at the stade Geoffroy-Guichard in SAINT-ETIENNE.