Argentina survive again — England next

The grinding machine keeps grinding

This is what Scaloni's Argentina do. They absorb, they wobble, they find a way. It has never looked clean. It has rarely looked comfortable. And yet the scoreboard, at the end of ninety minutes or a hundred and twenty, keeps reading in their favour.

The Switzerland match followed the same script: a contest that refused to be settled inside normal time, a period of extra time in which Argentina eventually found the decisive moments, and a final scoreline — 3-1 — that flatters the margin slightly. This is a team built on mentality before method, on the belief that they can outlast whatever is thrown at them. So far, the belief has been correct.

Scaloni has never pretended this run has been elegant. The word 'suffering' has become almost a badge of honour in the Argentina camp — the idea that enduring difficulty is not a flaw in the plan but the plan itself. Two extra-time knockouts in three matches is not a coincidence. It is a portrait.

The VAR subplot Switzerland won't let go

Switzerland are out, but they are not quiet about it. The Swiss have expressed pointed frustration over a VAR 'mistaken identity' incident during the match — a check in which, according to reports, the wrong player was initially identified in the review process. The specific details of exactly which moment and which players were involved remain subject to clarification, but the Swiss complaint is clear enough: they believe the incident affected the outcome, and they are saying so.

It is the kind of controversy that follows Argentina around major tournaments like a shadow they've stopped trying to outrun. Whether the VAR call was decisive or incidental, Switzerland's anger gives the story legs beyond the final whistle — and gives England fans one more talking point heading into next week.

England. Of course it's England.

The semi-final draw could not have produced a more loaded fixture. Argentina versus England at a World Cup carries the weight of decades — Maradona's hand, Owen's run, Beckham's red card, Riquelme's everything. The history writes itself, which means the actual match will have to work very hard to escape it.

England arrive as the fresher side, at least in terms of knockout minutes played. Whether that physical edge matters against a team as experienced in late-game survival as Argentina is the central question of the semi-final. Scaloni's squad have been to this place before — they know what it costs to win a World Cup, because they paid it three years ago.

Argentina have suffered their way to the last four. The question now is whether suffering has a ceiling — and whether England are the team to find it.

Scaloni, for his part, has not changed his expression once during this tournament.