Paul Scholes has sparked intense pre-match debate by delivering a fiery prediction ahead of the highly anticipated 2026 World Cup clash between Argentina and England. The Manchester United legend warned the Three Lions to prepare themselves for absolute bedlam on the pitch, expecting a massive collision.
Speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast, Scholes pointed out that neither side has reached its peak form yet despite navigating their way through the knockout brackets. “I think England and Argentina’s paths have been very similar,” Scholes remarked.
Scholes believes the South American squad still hold a massive psychological over England. “The biggest advantage Argentina have is that they’ve done it before,” Scholes added. “They know how to win these big games. They won the last World Cup. We’re yet to prove that.”
Scholes predicts an explosive showdown
The former international is convinced that the sheer pressure of the occasion will cause the match to boil over into an unpredictable, high-scoring thriller filled with disciplinary trouble. Furthermore, he himself knows that England has always struggled to win World Cup semi-finals.
“This will be chaos. This could be 4–3 either way. There’ll be yellow cards, red cards. If Argentina lose, they’ll all kick off. Absolutely guaranteed. And this game runs deep. If you lose to them, it’s horrible. Remember France ’98?”
Did Paul Scholes ever face Argentina on the World Cup?
Yes, Scholes has plenty of personal history with this specific fixture, having started for England against Argentina during the group stage of the 2002 World Cup in Sapporo, Japan. He played in central midfield. He was also on the infamous France ’98 round-of-16 clash he referenced, giving him a firsthand view of just how explosive this rivalry truly gets.
