LONDON: The FBI has labelled England’s semifinal with Argentina in Atlanta on Wednesday night as the highest risk match due to the fierce and enduring rivalry between the two sides.Forty years ago when Argentina beat England 2-1 in the Mexico’86 quarterfinal at the Azteca Stadium, the English were incensed. “He cheated,” England goalkeeper Peter Shilton said. “He didn’t show any remorse.”Argentina’s first goal, scored by Diego Maradona, came when he punched the ball past Shilton into the net with his fist. Despite England’s protestations, the referee claimed he didn’t see it and allowed it. Minutes later, Maradona scored the greatest World Cup goal of all time. Argentina would later go on to lift the World Cup, and Maradona would describe his first England goal as “ the hand of God”.Maradona later admitted in his autobiography that he indeed used his hand and said it was “some sort of symbolic revenge against the English” for the 1982 Falklands War, in which 649 Argentinians and 255 British troops died. Of the Argentinians killed, 323 were onboard the ARA Belgrano, the Argentine naval ship, when the then UK PM Margaret Thatcher authorised its sinking.“All I wanted to do was honour the memory of the dead,” Maradona said. “To wipe England off the world map – the world football map, that is.”On Wednesday, Maradona’s son, Diego Sinagara, urged fans to remember those who died, telling Spanish newspaper Marca: “For all Argentinians and Maradona fans, it will be a different kind of match, one that brings to mind everything about the Malvinas (Falklands War) and all our brothers who died there…”Last week the Argentina national football team released a video showing players celebrating in their dressing room with Argentina’s World Cup fan anthem La Cuarta Estrella, which includes the lyrics: “I am Argentine from cradle to grave, for the Malvinas, for Diego.”“Las Malvinas” is the Argentine name for the Falkland Islands. This week Argentina’s foreign minister Pablo Quirrno called Falklands Islanders an “artificially implanted” population in an essay in Argentinian newspaper La Nacion, demanding Britain enter talks to hand over the territory. He claimed the 2013 referendum was illegitimate.The UK Prime Minister’s official spokesman retorted: “The Falkland islanders are British with a right to determine their own future. The UK’s position is clear. The islanders have repeatedly expressed their wish to remain a British overseas territory.”This bitter rivalry, however, extends to even before the Falklands War. In 1966, when the two sides met in the World Cup quarterfinal at Wembley, Argentinian players used violent tackles, spitting, hair-pulling, and severe intimidation tactics. England manager Alf Ramsey famously branded them “animals” and Argentina captain Antonio Rattin, who died at the weekend, was sent off for dissent for arguing with the referee. The police had to be called to remove him from the pitch.The two sides met at France ’98 when David Beckham was given a red card kicking Argentina midfielder Diego Simeone. Simeone later admitted he had done everything possible to provoke the England midfielder. England lost on penalties. “English players are more naive. We look for ways to destroy him,” Roberto Perfumo, former Argentine captain, told the Guardian in 2002.Whilst Argentinian football culture appears to be all about whipping up anti-English sentiment, football was ironically introduced to Argentina in 1867 by the Hogg brothers who were Englishmen from Skelton, Yorkshire.Pubs across Britain are getting decked out for the biggest night of the year with flags ready. England fans are confident England can win. They also see the match as revenge for Maradona’s ‘Hand of God.’
