The FA is “looking for a friendly with Argentina” in which Lionel Messi could return to Wembley
- England have not played Argentina since they were beaten nearly 20 years ago
- But talks are underway with the Argentine FA to revive the rivalry at Wembley
- WATCH: ‘It All Begins’ – Episode 1 – The brand new football show from Mail Sport
The English Football Association is aiming for a friendly against World Cup winner Argentina.
The competition remains one of the greatest international rivalries, but the two nations have not competed against each other in nearly 20 years.
However, talks have been held with the Argentine Football Association about setting up a friendly with Lionel Messi returning to Wembley, as reported by ESPN.
Argentina would charge £3.9 million ($5 million) to play friendlies since their World Cup triumph in Qatar last year
But FA chief Mark Bullingham says funding for the match will not be a problem due to the lack of international friendlies on the fixture list.
The English Football Association is aiming for a match against World Cup winner Argentina
The match remains one of the earliest international rivalries, but has not been played since 2005
Diego Maradona ‘Hand of God’ in 1986 remains one of the biggest controversies
“The money is not the challenge,” Bullingham said.
“We actually have relatively few friendly chances now if you look at the way the international calendar is structured, but it (Argentina) is a match that we definitely want to play at least once.”
“There are several conversations we’ve had with many countries about friendlies against them. They (Argentina) are one of the countries we’ve ever talked to, but there’s nothing in the pipeline for them at the moment.”
England and Argentina have played fiery matches over the years, including at the World Cups in 1966, 1998 and 2002.
But the most memorable and controversial clash is the quarter-final of the 1986 World Cup, when Diego Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ helped Argentina to a 2-1 victory before lifting the famous trophy in Mexico.
The two countries last faced each other in November 2005 when a brace from Michael Owen helped England to a 3–2 victory in a friendly in Switzerland.
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