Sports News

Argentina stun England 2-1 with two late goals, then a Falklands banner sparks a row

Holders Argentina came from behind to beat England 2-1 in the World Cup semi-final in Atlanta on Wednesday and will face Spain in the final. The AFP report on Al Jazeera said Anthony Gordon put England ahead ten minutes into the second half in front of 68,239 fans. Lionel Messi then set up Enzo Fernandez for the equaliser and crossed for substitute Lautaro Martinez to head the winner in the 92nd minute.

The Guardian pointed to a tactical change. Thomas Tuchel switched to a back five, bringing on Ezri Konsa for Gordon, and that, it said, invited Argentina forward. England had been on course for their first World Cup final since 1966.

“This was an implausibly brutal new low.” — The Guardian match report

After the match, Argentina players held up a banner reading “Las Malvinas Son Argentinas”. Al Jazeera, via Reuters, noted that FIFA's stadium code bans political banners, and that the two countries fought over the islands in 1982. The Week, from India, set out the IFAB rules, recalled earlier World Cup flashpoints in 1966, 1986 and 1998, and quoted Argentina's vice-president, Victoria Villarruel, posting “The Falklands are Argentine!”

How each outlet framed it

• Al Jazeera — the comeback, Messi's two assists and the banner as a rules question.
• The Guardian — English heartbreak and Tuchel's substitution.
• The Week — the history of the dispute and possible FIFA discipline.

Where the numbers differ: Reuters named Lisandro Martinez and Giovani Lo Celso as the players with the banner; The Week, citing The Athletic, named Lo Celso and Nicolas Otamendi. AFP put the equaliser in the 85th minute, The Guardian in the 86th.

What happened next: FIFA said it would look into the banner the next day, Al Jazeera reported.