Old memories are resurfacing ahead of the Argentina-England semifinal — above all the Falkland Islands and the quarter-final of 40 years ago. Diego Maradona Jr, son of the late legend Diego Maradona, does not see the England match as an ordinary game.
The Argentina-England semifinal kicks off in Atlanta at 1 a.m. Bangladesh time. Political rivalry has added heat around the fixture. In April 1982, the 74-day war between Argentina and Britain over the Falkland Islands left 907 people dead. Before this semifinal meeting, Maradona’s son told the Spanish outlet Marca: “For Argentines and for Maradona’s fans, this is a special match. It brings back the memory of our brothers who died in the Falklands war.”
Four years after the Falklands war, Argentina and England met in the quarter-finals. At the Azteca in Mexico in 1986, that match produced Maradona’s “Hand of God” and his “Goal of the Century” — two of football’s most talked-about moments. Ahead of the Atlanta semifinal, Maradona’s son recalled that historic match of 40 years ago. “Watching this match (Argentina-England) also brings back what happened to my father in 1986,” he told Marca. “He won that historic match.”
Many will understand why the Argentina-England match is called the “Maradona-England” match. When Maradona took the field, his son said, he never treated it as an ordinary game. And while the political rivalry is much discussed, Lionel Scaloni is treating it as a normal match — a view echoed on Tuesday by Rodrigo De Paul.
Whatever Scaloni and De Paul say, Maradona’s son returned again and again to the events of 40 years ago in his Marca interview. “My father did not see this (Argentina-England) as an ordinary match,” he said. “A lot can be said. But this is no ordinary match.”
The great are never truly gone — the old adage inevitably surfaces when speaking of legends like Maradona and Pele. Maradona died in 2020 at the age of 60, but his image has been seen in the stands at every venue where Argentina have played at the 2026 World Cup.
In fine form, Messi has already scored 8 goals at this World Cup and provided 2 assists. Breaking record after record, he has set the mark for the most assists in World Cup history with 10, surpassing Maradona’s previous best of 8.
Ticket prices for the Argentina-England semifinal in Atlanta have also soared. The most expensive hospitality package at the stadium is selling from 55,000 Brazilian reais — about Tk 13,21,000 — including a VIP box. Seats in the stands near the pitch cost 19,300 reais (Tk 4,63,000). The cheapest tickets, a little farther from the field, are being resold at 11,000 Brazilian reais, or Tk 2,64,000. The winner of the semifinal meets Spain in the title decider in New Jersey on 19 July; Spain sealed their place by beating France 2-0 in Dallas on Tuesday.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report