Liverpool have caused a stir on social media after they posted a show of support for Argentina midfielder Alexis Mac Allister ahead of the World Cup semi-final with England.
The Reds do not have a single player in the England squad that has reached the last four in North America, though former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson and their former defender Jarrell Quansah are both part of Thomas Tuchel’s group.
They do, however, have representation in the Argentina squad in the form of Mac Allister, who will be hoping to help the defending champions reach the final with victory in what is sure to be a highly charged match.
And Liverpool raised eyebrows with a post on X (formerly Twitter), which read: “Macca and Argentina take on England for a place in the #FIFAWorldCup final.”
That was followed by a muscle emoji and an Argentina flag, which could be seen as implying support for the South American side instead of England.
While many Liverpool players have excelled for England over the years, with Reds legend Roger Hunt scoring three goals to help the Three Lions triumph in the 1966 World Cup, fans of the club have a complicated relationship with the national team. Many from the Liverpool area refer to themselves as “Scouse not English”.
England and Argentina share one of their fiercest rivalries in international football, which stretches back to their first World Cup meeting in the 1966 quarter-final and is heightened by persisting tension over the Falkland Islands.
Britain and Argentina went to war over the Falklands in 1982, with the 74-day conflict resulting in the deaths of 649 Argentine soldiers, 255 British combatants and three civilians. The Falklands remain a British controlled territory, though Argentina insists the archipelago in the South Atlantic is its possession.
Four years after that conflict, Argentina beat England in the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup thanks in part to Diego Maradona’s infamous ‘Hand of God’ goal, which he followed up with a brilliant second. England lost on penalties to Argentina in the last 16 in 1998, a defeat the Three Lions avenged with a win in the 2002 group stage.
Wednesday’s meeting for a place in the final with Spain is the first between the two sides since a 3-2 win for England in a 2005 friendly.
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