Amid the acrimony, wars, deep history, the hand of God and the boot of Beckham, those closest to the struggle acknowledge that England and Argentina make perfect footballing sparring partners. Described as the only trans-continental derby, this rivalry is hewn in politics, history, and football folklore, with most Argentinian footballers’ eyes lighting up when talk turns to England.
Simeone on the Rivalry
Diego Simeone, now the belligerent Atlético Madrid coach but once the arch nemesis of David Beckham, recalled his love for playing against the English. In 2002, he told the Guardian: “I love playing against the English. English football is always more open, aggressive and passionate. Whether you win or lose against English teams, you always feel it’s been a proper contest. The first time I played against them was at Wembley in 1991…” He rolled up his trouser leg, pointing to a scar on his shin: “I’ve still got a souvenir from Stuart Pearce from that day. Great game.”
The 1998 World Cup Clash
The famous last-16 match in 1998 was the first World Cup meeting since Diego Maradona’s hand of God in 1986. Simeone’s cunning led to Beckham’s red card after a foolish flick. Simeone described it as one of the great World Cup contests: “It is the best international match I’ve played in. They [England] were incredible that night. Alan Shearer and Paul Ince were extraordinary. At times it seemed Shearer was fighting us on his own. You have to remember they played for 70 minutes with 10 men.”
Regarding Beckham’s sending-off, Simeone said: “That’s way over the top. It’s not that it frightens me but it’s a wakeup call for everyone, including journalists. You have to be careful. It was not just my fault. There’s a ref involved, too. I guess David had a torrid few months after that. The press were putting all the blame on him. I don’t think that was at all fair. He just made a mistake, an instinctive reaction.” Simeone and Beckham later met in Miami for Argentina’s game against Cape Verde, with Beckham posting on Instagram: “Bumped into an old friend.”
Michael Owen’s Goal
England had Michael Owen’s extraordinary run from the halfway line to make it 2-1. Owen, only 18 at the time, recalled in 2018: “Becks played the initial ball to me and one of their midfielders was only a couple of yards away. I just thought that, if I took a good touch, I could run past him and start an attack. It was only after the first touch that I looked up and thought: ‘Oh my God – there’s a goal on here!’ As soon as I saw Ayala, who was isolated deeper, it was a case of making the best chance to shoot.”
Glenn Hoddle, England manager that day, said: “There was no fear in him whatsoever. When Michael turns, runs and beats the first couple of players, I remember thinking: ‘Bloody hell! He’s clean through!’ But Roberto Ayala was so deep, he was almost on the D of the penalty area and I hadn’t seen him. But as soon as Ayala squared up to him, it was clear he didn’t have a clue how much pace Michael had.”
Simeone admitted Argentina hadn’t done their homework on Owen: “He was a shock to us. He was only 18 and we hadn’t seen him play. It was a pleasant surprise for the fans [but] not for us.”
The Red Card Controversy
Hoddle recalled the red card shown by Danish referee Kim Milton Nielsen: “I thought: ‘Oh, here comes the yellow’, but suddenly the red came out. And I’m thinking: ‘What on earth is going on here?’ It was never in a million years a sending-off. Becks knows he did the wrong thing and that at that level they’ll make it into something else, which they did. But you need strong refereeing.” In a separate interview, Simeone conceded: “Sometimes you have to be a bit cunning and sometimes you play the fool. I happened to be the intelligent one. Beckham did nothing to me.”
Sol Campbell’s Disallowed Goal
Sol Campbell headed what looked to be an 81st-minute winner, only for it to be disallowed for a Shearer challenge. Hoddle said: “It’s almost like I’m living it again. It’s so deep. It scarred me. I’m looking down into the corner flag where Michael’s on Sol’s back. There’s about five players celebrating. Suddenly I saw Ray Clemence, the goalkeeping coach. He looks back towards the pitch and says: ‘What the fuck is going on?’ My eyes go back to the pitch and they’re attacking. It’s like a nightmare.” Owen added: “How Argentina didn’t score from that was amazing. I think it was 11 against four!”
The match ended in a 4-3 penalty defeat for England. After the match, the team buses drew up alongside each other outside the Saint-Étienne stadium. “You could have been forgiven for mistaking them as fans,” said John Gorman, Hoddle’s assistant. “They were jumping up and down like madmen.” Simeone said: “Knocking out England, with all the history that goes with that, was a huge joy.”
Revenge in 2002
England gained revenge in 2002 with a 1-0 win in Sapporo. David Beckham scored the penalty won by Michael Owen from a foul by Mauricio Pochettino. Pochettino always smiles and good-naturedly lectures English audiences on fair play, saying: “For sure it was a dive.” Owen conceded: “I could have stayed on my feet, the defender’s caught me and I did have a decent gash down my shin from it – but I could have stayed up.”
Maradona’s Legacy
Simeone recalled watching Maradona in 1986 with his dad. “When Maradona scored the hand of God goal, my father shouted ‘handball’. I told my dad: ‘No, it’s a good goal.’ I just didn’t see it. Maradona was so quick. But the second goal proved he was the greatest player in the world.” He explained the Argentinian street football philosophy: “In Argentina, when we played in the street as a kid we didn’t call it football. We call it jugar a la pelota [playing with the ball]. It’s prettier than football. It’s about beating players, dribbling, showing off. Football is something more professional, more serious and disciplined. In Argentina, dribbling past three players is the ultimate.” When Maradona scored the goal of the century against England, Simeone said: “That was jugar a la pelota.”
