CORNERFLICK
Argentina have reached their third World Cup final in the last four tournaments after coming from behind to beat England.
The run marks a sharp change in a nation that spent years falling short in the knockout rounds. Between 1994 and 2010, Argentina failed to go beyond the quarter-finals in five straight World Cups.
Their first return to the final came in Brazil in 2014, ending a 24-year wait. Alejandro Sabella’s side beat Switzerland, Belgium and the Netherlands in the knockout rounds before losing the final to Germany in extra time.
They went one step further in 2022. Lionel Scaloni’s team recovered from an opening defeat by Saudi Arabia and went on to beat France to win the title.
Four years later, much of that championship group remains in place, and Argentina are back in the final again. Since 2014, the only tournament they have missed the title match was 2018, when France knocked them out in the round of 16.