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¡Vamos, España! Spain face off against Argentina in the World Cup final
England's World Cup dream ends in heartbreak, setting up a Spain v Argentina final
Spain now knows exactly who stands between them and World Cup glory after Argentina booked their place in Sunday's final in New York with one of the great comeback wins of the tournament.
England were left gutted, having led 1-0 before conceding twice in under 10 minutes, with Enzo Fernández and Lautaro Martínez turning the game on its head and a rampant Leo Messi setting up both goals.
For plenty of English-speaking expats across Spain, this wasn't quite the final everyone had hoped for. An England v Spain showdown had felt like the dream scenario for anyone with a foot in both camps, but Argentina had other ideas, and now it's Sunday's Spain-Argentina clash that'll have the whole country buzzing.
Before kick off there had been talk of keeping things purely about football rather than reopening old wounds over the Falkland Islands, an idea that lasted almost no time at all once an Argentina senior government figure branded the English "usurping pirates." On the pitch, tempers flared early, with Jude Bellingham at the centre of the first flashpoint after a foul from Enzo Fernández, kicking off a feisty opening that set the tone for a physical first half.
England dominated the ball early on without doing much with it, and Argentina keeper Emiliano "Dibu" Martínez barely had a save to make in the opening half hour. The closest either side came was a fierce strike from Fernández that whistled just wide, and the first half ended goalless with little else to shout about.
Argentina came out sharper after the break, with Julián Álvarez forcing a save from Jordan Pickford before hitting the side netting moments later. But it was England who struck first, with a slick counter attack in the 55th minute ending in Anthony Gordon finding the net after Morgan Rogers picked him out with a perfect cross, catching Nahuel Molina badly out of position.
That lead didn't last long. Messi picked out Nico González just before the hour mark, and although Pickford somehow kept the effort out, Argentina's pressure kept building. Alexis Mac Allister then had two glorious chances in quick succession, one crashing off the post and another straight at Pickford, as England were pinned back further and further.
Argentina's equaliser finally came in the 85th minute, when a short corner routine ended with Fernández completely unmarked at the edge of the box, and he made no mistake, smashing the ball home. England barely had time to regroup before Messi struck again deep into stoppage time, whipping in a cross for Lautaro Martínez to head in unchallenged and complete a stunning turnaround.
By the time England pushed forward in search of an equaliser, the game was already gone. There were tears on both sides in Atlanta. Heartbreak for England, pure joy for Argentina and now one final hurdle remains for Spain as they bid to lift the World Cup for only the second time.
¡Vamos, España!
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