Gary Neville makes England vs Argentina prediction ahead of World Cup semi-final

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13 July 2026

Three Lions facing toughest test of the summer so far - and pundits’ predictions are split

England

on Wednesday have the chance to book their place in the

World Cup

final for the first time since winning the tournament in 1966, but they must get past the reigning champions

Argentina

if they are to do so, and pundits are beginning to weigh in.

It is the first competitive meeting between the two nations since the 2002

, when

won a group-stage meeting 1-0,

but there is plenty more on the line here

Neither

nor

have quite been at their best this summer.

made narrow escapes to edge past Cape Verde and Egypt in the rounds of 32 and 16, while

also

survived a scare against DR Congo and laboured past Norway

in the quarter-final.

But

have plenty of cause for optimism ahead of what, on paper, is an evenly-matched semi-final.

That is the opinion of

Gary Neville

, who feels the

Three Lions

are well-placed to reach a first final for 60 years.

“England haven’t reached a World Cup since 1966, and this is an unbelievable chance to win the World Cup,” he began, speaking on The Overlap.

“It’s not a vintage Argentina, by any stretch – it’s not as good as the Argentina side from four years ago, but it’s still got danger, of course, because they’ve got Messi and an unbelievable spirit.”

Gary Neville is confident

have what it takes to get the better of Argentina

AFP/Getty

England will face one of France or Spain in the final, provided they qualify, and

Ian Wright

believes that might be a step too far for Thomas Tuchel’s men.

The ex-Arsenal man does, however, believe England’s strengths lend themselves well to getting past

: “If we get to a France or a Spain, I think the level goes to another place entirely. It’s going to be difficult – it’s the final, isn’t it?

“But I don’t fear

like I’d fear France or Spain, because I think there are a lot of fallacies with them.

“I think we’ll beat

– not just because I want us to, but because of the way they play and how narrow they are but our wingers need to do a lot more than what they have done. I think we’ll be able to block them and break.”

Roy Keane

, unsurprisingly, was quick to bring Neville and Wright down a peg, saying he expects

to pull something special out in the semi-final.

”Truthfully, I think they’ll come up short against

,” said the Irishman. “I think definitely against France. Spain might be different, get the job done [against Spain], but I think there’s too much there. I think

would just find something in a tight game.”

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