Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni has said mixing football with history would be madness ahead of their World Cup semi-final clash with England.

England and Argentina face off at 8:00 pm Irish time tonight for a place in Sunday’s World Cup final, with the rivalry between the two countries on the pitch running deep, the most notable incident being Diego Maradona’s famous ‘Hand of God’ goal in the 1986 World Cup quarter-final.

However, tensions between the two nations extend beyond football, with the history of the 1982 Falklands War remaining prominent. Argentina still disputes the sovereignty of the British overseas territory, with fans regularly singing songs about it.

Argentina players and fans. Pic: Hector Vivas - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images
Argentina players and fans. Pic: Hector Vivas – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images

Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni has said the history between the two countries will have no bearing on the semi-final, saying, ‘It’s a football match; I can’t mix things up, out of respect for what happened so many years ago.’

‘It was a very sad time in our history, and there isn’t much we can do about it,’ he said. ‘Mixing the two would be madness. We criticise that there was a war. Of course, people remember history and what happened.

‘It is a game of football; we need to keep things separate. Yes, we remember Argentinian people and people who were lost in the war, but let’s not conflate things.’

Lionel Scaloni, Head Coach of Argentina. Pic: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
Lionel Scaloni, Head Coach of Argentina. Pic: Justin Setterfield/Getty Images

Scaloni added: ‘What do the players of today have to do with many, many years ago? It was a sad time; we remember this, of course, but it would be quite wrong to put this into the game.’

However, in the English camp, head coach Thomas Tuchel has said he believes the Argentinian team is ‘fuelled by history’ and insists they have some ‘kind of edge.’

‘They are fuelled by history; it means a lot to them. So, this is what we basically expect and what we are up against. But we are also emotional, we have the grit, we have the mentality that it takes to go up against it. And we are ready for it.’

The clash will be the first time the two sides have faced each other in any kind of match since a 3-2 friendly win for England in 2005. The winner will secure a spot in the World Cup final against a resilient Spain side who completely outclassed France in their semi-final clash on Tuesday night.