Men’s World Cup Semifinal Live Blog: England vs. Argentina — Lineups out!

Live Blog

Lineups out! Changes on both sides today:

Welcome to the Bavarian Football Works daily Men’s World Cup match thread! Every day during this tournament we will have a feature thread for discussion of the day’s matchups.

Now that France and Spain have settled business, it is time for Thomas Tuchel and England to square up against Lionel Messi’s Argentina. The greatest of all time saw his goal streak snapped in the last round but still made important contributions to Argentina’s win, while England have relied on Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham to make the difference this tournament. Both teams have clear areas to improve, and the pressure is only getting higher.

• England – Argentina (3:00 PM EDT)

Latest results:

• France 0-2 Spain

Predictions

England 3-2 Argentina a.e.t

Argentina have simply looked too vulnerable all through the knockouts, requiring late wins each time against competition that frankly they should have taken care of. The same argument could be made for England, but they had on paper the tougher fights anyway, and have more game changers to call upon when the going gets tough. The margins will be fine, and expect every referee decision and VAR intervention to be under the microscope.

Reading and listening

• ✍️ BBC: ‘Hotter and hotter and hotter’ – Europe’s new climate in seven charts
• ✍️ n+1: World Cupcophony
• ✍️ The Guardian: Love and hate collide: England v Argentina is not simply a grudge match
• ✍️ Outside Write: Animals and Pirates: A Brief History of Argentina versus England

Odds and Ends

Question for U.S-based Bundesliga fans today:

How to Watch

TV/streaming: Fox One (USA), Peacock (USA en Español), Find Your Country

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Check out our beginners thread if you have any more questions. That’s about it. Auf geht’s!

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