England take on Argentina in the World Cup semi-final on Wednesday night, with one former Premier League defender sending the nation a warning over the officials11:23, 13 Jul 2026Updated 11:23, 13 Jul 2026England have been sent an alarming warning about referees ‘giving Argentina everything’ at the World Cup. The Three Lions face the reigning World Champions in the semi-final of the tournament in Atlanta on Wednesday night (8pm kick-off).‌England booked their place in the final four with a 2-1 extra-time win over Norway. Argentina also needed the extra 30 minutes to overcome 10-man Switzerland in their quarter-final, eventually coming out as 3-1 winners.‌The match saw Switzerland’s Breel Embolo sent off in the second half, after a VAR intervention. Argentina’s Leandro Paredes was initially booked for a foul on Embolo, but the new ‘mistaken identity’ rule came into play, with replays showing that there was no contact.‌The yellow card was therefore transferred from Paredes to Embolo for simulation. The Swiss striker had already been booked, meaning that he was forced to leave the field.It’s a decision that angered Switzerland boss Mura Yakin, who branded rule that led to the second yellow card as ‘unacceptable’. But it wasn’t only that decision that left those associated with Switzerland bemused.Former Man City defender Manuel Akanji has not held back in his assessment of referee Joao Pedro Silva Pinheiro’s performance. Speaking after the game, Akanji said: “When you have the referee against you, it becomes difficult.‌“Every little thing was called against us. Every dive and every foul by the Argentinians went unpunished. I don’t usually say anything against the officials, but I’ve never experienced such a one-sided game as today.“As soon as the game was over, I thought: I’m so proud of our team. What we’ve achieved throughout the entire tournament, and especially today… We played against the world champions, and they didn’t stand a chance.‌“I can’t recall a single scoring opportunity from open play where we were lucky. If the game had continued 11 against 11, it would have likely gone in our favour.”It’s not the first time that Argentina have been accused of receiving preferential treatment from the officials in the World Cup. Fans pointed out a potential breach of rules when Lautaro Martinez escaped a second yellow card for jumping the barrier in celebration of his goal in the closing minutes of extra time.There was also controversy during the round of 16 match vs Egypt, when the Pharos saw a goal to take a 2-0 lead ruled out by VAR. Mostafa Zico’s goal was ruled out for a foul on Lisandro Martinez early in the move, with claims that the goal should have stood.‌While Zico did put Egypt 2-0 up after, three late goals from Cristian Romero, Lionel Messi and Enzo Fernandez saw Argentina complete a comeback. There were, however, some calls for an Egypt penalty in the build-up to the injury-time winner.England will hope that they don’t have similar complaints as they aim to overcome the World Cup holders and book their place in the final of the tournament for the first time since 1966.Get the latest World Cup news straight to your inbox by signing up to our Make Football Great Again newsletter now!Article continues belowContent cannot be displayed without consent