England vs Argentina kick-off time statement issued as weather fears grow | Football | Sport

The Three Lions reached the semi-finals with a battling victory over Norway. Argentina were confirmed as England’s next opponents after overcoming Switzerland in their quarter-final. The upcoming clash on Wednesday will reignite a famous footballing rivalry between the two nations, fuelled by three World Cup meetings from 1986 to 2002. There had been concerns over the weather at Atlanta Stadium after forecasts predicted thunderstorms could strike on matchday. England’s round of 16 tie with Mexico was previously delayed by an hour due to stormy weather in Mexico City. However, a spokesperson for Atlanta Stadium, more commonly known as Mercedes-Benz Stadium, has confirmed that the retractable roof means the scheduled kick-off time will not be changed.

“Since the stadium is covered, the match is not weather-dependent so it will be played as scheduled,” a stadium spokesperson said. “No, it won’t be delayed, the game will start as planned regardless of weather.

“We will do everything we can to ensure the safety of fans, but it won’t delay the start of the game if fans are still entering the stadium or are delayed entering due to weather conditions.

“The roof allows us the ability to play on time regardless of weather.” Stadium gates will open three hours before kick-off, with the spokesperson adding: “If we are detecting weather in the area, we would do what we can to get fans in as soon as possible.”

England have faced a range of conditions throughout the tournament. Their opening victory over Croatia took place in the air-conditioned Dallas Stadium before the squad subsequently played at altitude in Mexico City and battled fierce humidity against Norway in Miami.

England will now need to keep their composure against Argentina as the Three Lions bid to reach their first-ever World Cup final on foreign soil. From a defensive standpoint, Tuchel’s main concern will be curtailing Lionel Messi’s influence, who has already scored eight goals in the tournament.

England demonstrated tremendous character in their quarter-final triumph over Norway, though two-goal star Jude Bellingham offered a contrasting perspective to his manager. Bellingham pushed back after learning Tuchel had voiced criticism of certain aspects of the performance, yet the England boss insists there is no rift between them.

“I think we come from the same place,” Tuchel said. “Our comments come from the same place from being competitive and having the edge when competition is on.”

He continued: “So no problem. I spoke to the whole team. We debriefed. I spoke to the whole team after in the dressing room, which was basically the same message.

“And I explained it again the next evening to just move on forward. And then we straight away in the talk put on a new direction, put on a new head, which is semi-final and Argentina.”