Thomas Tuchel walked into his pre-match press conference in Atlanta and placed on the table a tactical idea that has largely vanished from the elite game: a dedicated, old-fashioned man-marker on Lionel Messi. “I was thinking about this, if we do a proper old-school man-mark on Messi,” the England manager said. “I’m not sure if we follow through with this idea, but it crossed my mind.” The admission, delivered with a blend of candour and calculation, framed the central question ahead of Wednesday’s World Cup semi-final at Mercedes-Benz Stadium: can a meticulously drilled England side, built on the goals of Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane, solve a puzzle that has confounded every opponent at this tournament? Messi, at 39, has never faced England in a competitive international. He arrives as the joint-leading scorer with eight goals, having dragged Argentina through a knockout phase in which they twice needed extra time and once overturned a two-goal deficit.

Both teams reached the last four through passages that tested their resilience more than their fluency. England required a late comeback and a red card to edge Mexico 3-2 in the last 16, then relied on Bellingham’s extra-time winner to subdue Norway. Argentina, the defending champions, laboured past Cape Verde, Egypt and Switzerland, conceding first in each knockout tie before rallying. The pattern has sharpened a contrast in attacking profiles: England’s 13 goals have come from only three players, with Bellingham and Kane each on six, while Argentina’s 16 have been spread across eight scorers. Analysts in London note that Tuchel’s side has yet to produce a commanding 90-minute performance, a concern the German acknowledged when he said his team “must play far better” to overcome the world’s fourth-ranked side.

The fixture carries a historical charge that both camps have tried, with varying success, to defuse. The 1986 quarter-final in Mexico City, where Diego Maradona scored with his fist and then with a slalom through the entire England defence, remains the defining image of the rivalry. Twelve years later, David Beckham’s red card and Argentina’s penalty shootout victory deepened the enmity. Argentine coach Lionel Scaloni, speaking in Buenos Aires, insisted the match is “just a football match, nothing else,” while veterans’ groups representing the 1982 Falklands conflict echoed that separation. Tuchel, for his part, said he would not use history “as fuel,” focusing instead on what his players can control. Security officials in the United States have nonetheless banned Argentine fans from displaying any provocative political imagery inside the stadium.

Team news tilted slightly in England’s favour on the eve of the game. Declan Rice, who had been isolated with illness, trained fully and is available to anchor midfield alongside Elliot Anderson. Jarell Quansah remains suspended, and Jordan Henderson is out with a broken arm, but Tuchel otherwise has a full squad. Argentina’s only selection debate centres on the right side of midfield, where Rodrigo de Paul’s place is under scrutiny after a subdued tournament; Nicolás González and Giuliano Simeone are the alternatives. Scaloni is expected to retain the 4-4-2 shape that pairs Messi with Julián Álvarez in attack, shielded by a midfield quartet that includes Enzo Fernández and Alexis Mac Allister.

The winner will meet Spain in Sunday’s final after Luis de la Fuente’s side eliminated France 2-0. For England, a victory would end a 60-year wait to return to the World Cup’s showpiece; for Argentina, it would keep alive the ambition of becoming the first nation to retain the trophy since Brazil in 1962. The collision of those stakes, and of Messi with the one major football nation he has never faced, ensures that the tactical gambit Tuchel teased will be scrutinised as much for its execution as for its audacity.