Kane on England-Argentina rivalry: “it’s as big as it gets”
The Bayern Munich forward spoke about England’s historic relationship with Argentina ahead of the World Cup semifinal.
Argentina versus England in the World Cup semifinal feels like a game worthy of a World Cup semifinal. Messi vs Bellingham. Álvarez vs Kane. Tuchel vs Scaloni. Alfajores vs Custard Creams.
And there’s also the political history. We won’t go into it here, but old tensions have been brought to the forefront of everyone’s minds in the hours leading up to the game, with certain sections of the media on both sides revelling in the opportunity to stoke the flames of division and hatred while other, more sane folk, are keen to let sleeping dogs lie.
While it’s obviously nothing other than pernicious to bring back the emotions of a violent past, the storyline is written. At least on the pitch, there’s plenty to keep us talking. Wins for Argentina in 1986 and 1998 still hurt England fans, and the grudges against the South American side are strong.
“What a game, what an occasion”
“I mean, what a game, what an occasion to play one of the best teams, the reigning world champions, in a semifinal of a World Cup,” Kane told British broadcaster ITV. “In these moments, I think back to being a kid and having dreams and what it’d be like to play in these games.
“This is as big as it gets,” he reiterated, “so I’m really excited for this week. I think it’s going to be a special game and what a tough team to play against but hopefully that brings the best out in us.”
Playing against a team like Argentina in a World Cup semifinal is something players dream of and can be overwhelmed by; Kane replied “yeah and no” when asked if he thinks about the magnitude of the tie. “I think it’s not something you want to focus too much on, surrounding the history. That’s all part of it and that’s what you guys [in the media] will talk about, the fans will be involved in.
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“It’s us against a great team, who are smart, who are tactical”
“But from a player’s point of view it’s us against a great team, who are smart, who are tactical, who know how to buy fouls, know how to slow the game down. Like many different teams you come up against throughout your whole career.
“So, it’s England versus Argentina, it’s two of the biggest nations going toe to toe. Two giants in the semifinal of a World Cup. The rest of it is just a small part. For us, we have a focus, we have a preparation that we do in every moment, in every game and this game is no different. The most important thing is that we back ourselves to be successful on this stage.”
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