New Delhi, July 13 (IANS) Former England winger Joe Cole believes that the Three Lions will put ‘Messi to bed’ during the FIFA World Cup 2026 semifinal clash at the Atlanta Stadium as Thomas Tuchel’s side will meet Argentina for the first time in 21 years.

Thursday’s (IST) meeting will be the latest instalment of the England-Argentina rivalry at the World Cup, with the two nations having clashed five times on the world stage previously in 1962, 1966, 1986, 1998 and 2002, with England coming out on top in their last meeting in Japan thanks to David Beckham’s penalty.

Argentina are the reigning World Champions having triumphed in Qatar four years ago, which was their third World Cup triumph and first in 36 years. But, Cole believes that the South American side will be thwarted by England attacking strength.

“We will have to put Lionel Messi to bed. We’re going to put him to bed,” Cole said on The Rest is Football podcast.

Like England, Argentina progressed to the semi-finals of the World Cup in extra time. After a 1-1 draw with Switzerland in 90 minutes, Julian Alvarez curled in a spectacular second for the South American side, and Lautaro Martinez sealed the 3-1 win.

In the Round of 16, they pulled off a dramatic World Cup comeback to battle from 2-0 down to beat Egypt 3-2. They were trailing by two goals in the 79th minute, with their three goals coming within 13 minutes of each other.

Before that, they were surprisingly taken to extra time by World Cup debutants Cape Verde in the Round of 32, before an own goal eventually saw Scaloni’s side advance with a 3-2 victory.

In the group stages, they beat Algeria, Austria and Jordan, and are the only side in the tournament alongside France with a 100% record (including extra time).

—IANS

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