Spain’s players would prefer to play Argentina in the World Cup final instead of England, according to reports.
Spain secured their place in the World Cup final with an impressive 2-0 win against France in the semi-final on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, England will play Argentina in the second semi-final in Atlanta to decide who will meet Spain in Sunday’s final, which kicks off at 8pm BST.
A World Cup final against Spain this weekend would offer England a chance of retribution after their defeat to Luis de la Fuente’s side in the European Championship final in 2024.
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But according to El Chiringuito’s World Cup correspondent Juanfe Sanz, Spain’s players are ‘eager’ to see Argentina beat England in their semi-final so they can face Lionel Messi and his teammates this Sunday.
‘I have less than 23 hours to learn songs I’ll probably never sing again, because I really want to face Argentina in the final. I don’t even want to see England, I want Argentina in the final,’ Sanz said after Spain’s 2-0 win over France in Dallas.
‘It’s great that Luis de la Fuente gets along with Scaloni [Argentina’s head coach] and that they chat on the phone, but I want Argentina, and I want to inflict as much damage as possible on the footballing front.
‘I think, and I’m sure of this, that in the Spain’s dressing room, the team they’re most eager to face is Argentina. It’s crystal clear – they don’t want a final against England, they want Argentina.
‘And looking at how things are going, with the confidence they [Spain] show every day, and how they play like they’re untouchable yet still deliver a performance like today’s, let them keep acting that way, with that ego.
‘And let me be clear – I want to crush Argentina. Tomorrow, I’m all about Argentina, I’m totally pro-Argentina.’
Asked why Spain’s players would prefer to face Argentina instead of England, Sanz replied: ‘Well, even if we don’t realise it, the polls from shows like El Chiringuito have reached the dressing room, the fans’ sentiment has got through… how they’ve belittled us, the comments from the Argentine press, who I think are a bit full of themselves, I think there was someone on TV who said Argentina would undoubtedly win the World Cup, and others celebrating it as if it were their own national team.
‘It’s the perfect storm, especially after the Finalissima that never happened [Spain’s friendly against Argentina was cancelled in March due to unrest in the Middle East], where they accused us of pulling out because we were afraid of them.
‘Well, the moment has arrived. I hope there’s a 377-minute extra-time period and they end up absolutely exhausted. But I’ll celebrate the final penalty Argentina scores in the shootout tomorrow against England, I’ll celebrate it almost like Porro’s goal today, or Oyarzabal’s goal. So yeah, I’m really looking forward to the final. And if they lose? Well, it’s a win-win situation.’
Speaking after his side’s victory over France, Spain head coach, Luis de la Fuente, was also asked if he had a preference between facing Argentina and England in the World Cup final.
‘We were talking yesterday about how this Spain – France semi-final could be an early final, but I also think I mentioned that the Argentina – England match is another early final,’ De la Fuente said.
‘It’s no coincidence we’re here, you know the details, you know the four best teams in the FIFA ranking. That has never happened before in history, it demonstrates the footballing potential that exists at the World Cup.
‘And believe me, right now we’re not in a position to have preferences, we don’t care.
‘Each one has its own traits. Obviously, football in Argentina is not the same as football in England, European football is not the same as South American football.
‘I’m really excited to face Argentina because of my friendship with Lionel Scaloni, but I have a lot of respect for England’s footballing potential. And in my opinion, before coming here to the World Cup I cited England as one of the real contenders.
‘It’s going to be a close match between two major teams but we welcome them with open arms.’
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