Atlanta (Georgia) [US], July 15 (ANI): England defender Marc Guehi believes the pressure lies firmly on defending champions Argentina ahead of Wednesday’s FIFA World Cup 2026 semi-final, while teammate Ezri Konsa urged the Three Lions to ignore the history surrounding one of football’s fiercest rivalries, reported ESPN.
England face Argentina at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta for a place in the World Cup final, where Spain awaits after defeating France 2-0 in the first semi-final.
Speaking ahead of the blockbuster clash, Guehi insisted England have nothing to fear against the reigning world champions.
“There isn’t pressure on us,” Guehi said, as per ESPN. “What’s the pressure? The onus is on them. They’re the World Champions. They need to come out; they need to defend their title. There’s no pressure on us at all.”
“Everyone is excited, to be honest. The occasion, big players, everyone’s relishing the opportunity against them and looking forward to it,” he added.
The semi-final renews one of the World Cup’s most iconic rivalries, remembered for Diego Maradona’s infamous “Hand of God” goal in 1986 and David Beckham’s red card during the teams’ 1998 Round of 16 meeting. Off the pitch, the fixture also carries historical significance because of the long-running dispute over the Falkland Islands.
However, Konsa said England’s focus remains solely on football.
“We just have to focus on ourselves,” Konsa said, according to ESPN. “Try and forget about the history behind it, not get too fueled up about it and go out there and do what we know we can do best.”
England reached the last four after battling back to beat Norway 2-1 after extra time in the quarter-finals. Thomas Tuchel’s side have not always been convincing with their performances, and the England manager himself publicly criticised aspects of the display against Norway.
Konsa, though, dismissed suggestions that Tuchel’s comments had caused any unrest within the squad.
“We have a great group,” Konsa said. “We’re all together. There’s been no issues. In this tournament, mindset is the biggest thing. I think for us, outside noise is always gonna happen. But you have to be able to block it out. We’ve been in the game a long time now; we know what comes of it.”
England’s defensive unit faces perhaps its toughest challenge yet against Lionel Messi, who has scored eight goals at the tournament and is tied with France captain Kylian Mbappe in the race for the Golden Boot.
Guehi acknowledged Messi’s quality but stressed Argentina’s threat extends far beyond the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner.
“He is a great player, probably one of the best, so we’re going to try and do our best [to stop him],” Guehi said. “But it’s not just him on the field. You’ve got other really good players on the team, but it’s important that we stay as focused as possible on ourselves and execute our game plan.”
Argentina arrive unbeaten after winning all six of their matches in the tournament, including hard-fought knockout victories over Egypt, Cape Verde and Switzerland. Lionel Scaloni’s side are seeking a second successive World Cup final after lifting the trophy in Qatar in 2022.
England, meanwhile, are aiming to reach only the second World Cup final in their history, having last contested and won the tournament’s showpiece in 1966. A victory over Argentina would also extend the Three Lions’ recent positive run in major tournaments, with Wednesday’s contest marking their fourth semi-final appearance since 2018. (ANI)
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