World Cup 2026: Meet the 91-year-old Argentine journalist covering his 18th World Cup

Argentina have once again reached the semi-finals of the World Cup and are preparing to face old foes England on Wednesday (20:00 BST) in a match you can watch live on BBC One and the BBC iPlayer.

Macaya believes Argentina have every chance of repeating their success from 2022.

“Of course they can,” he says. “If we’re talking about what is possible, about the future, I believe Argentina is capable of winning.”

And there is perhaps no surprise when he is asked to name his favourite Argentina player. “Clearly, it’s Messi,” he says.

But when the inevitable question follows – who is the greatest of all time? – the certainty disappears.

“That question deserves a smile,” he says. “There’s no way to measure players throughout history.

“Times have changed. Opponents have changed. Every player is unique. I can say who I personally liked, but that doesn’t mean I believe that player was the best in history.”

It is a response that helps explain why Macaya has remained respected for so long. Rather than definitive rankings, he prefers nuance.

The same applies when he discusses Messi and another brilliant Argentina No 10 – Diego Maradona

“It is very difficult to make a cold comparison,” he says.

“The opponents were different. The needs were different. The support from their team-mates was different. Each had their own life and their own history.”

And he offers a similar answer when asked to compare Pele’s Brazil in 1970 with Maradona’s Argentina in 1986.

“There is no way to compare them,” he says. “The style is completely different.”