Steve McManaman Predicts Spain Will Defeat Argentina in World Cup Final

Spain against Argentina. New York on a Sunday. A World Cup final with history in the background and a prediction from a former Liverpool star cutting straight to the point.

Steve McManaman, speaking on ESPN FC, didn’t bother with caveats or long tactical breakdowns. He sees this going one way.

“I’m going 3-1 to Spain. I’ll be nice and concise,” he said, nailing his colours to the mast for the reigning European champions and leaving it at that.

Spain’s Surge to the Brink of History

Spain arrive in the final with a ruthless, controlled momentum. In Dallas on Tuesday, they brushed aside tournament favourites France 2-0, a scoreline that actually flattered the 2018 champions. Luis de la Fuente’s side dictated the semi-final, pressed with conviction, and strangled French hopes long before the final whistle.

That win pushed Spain to the edge of a landmark: a first World Cup title since 2010, and only their second overall. The way they handled France — clinical, assured, never panicked — is exactly why McManaman expects them not just to win, but to do so “comfortably”.

He didn’t spell out how the goals would come or who would decide it. He didn’t need to. His confidence in Spain’s collective strength said enough.

Argentina’s Late-Show Specialists

Across the bracket, Argentina have taken the scenic route, but they keep arriving on time. Their semi-final against England in Dallas underlined what everyone already knows about La Albiceleste: they are never beaten until the clock stops.

Chasing the game against the Euro 2024 finalists, Argentina summoned that familiar resilience. They struck twice in the final five minutes plus stoppage time, flipping a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 victory and sealing their seventh win of the tournament.

It was chaotic, dramatic, pure Argentina. Where Spain have largely imposed order, Argentina have thrived in the storm.

A First World Cup Meeting Since 1966

For all their stature, these two nations barely share World Cup history. Their only previous meeting came in 1966, in England, in a Group 2 clash that still echoes faintly in Argentine football folklore.

Back then, La Albiceleste edged a 2-1 win, booking a place in the quarter-finals before being knocked out — narrowly — by the eventual champions, England. That slender slice of history now hangs over Sunday’s final, the only reference point between two modern football powers who have largely circled each other from afar on this stage.

McManaman is convinced that Spain, under De la Fuente, will treat this as a chance to wipe that old result from the record, however distant it may seem to today’s players.

Revenge, Renewal, and a Lost Finalissima

There was supposed to be a more recent chapter. Spain and Argentina had been scheduled to meet in the Finalissima in March, a showcase between continental champions that promised an early look at this heavyweight clash.

It never happened. The match was cancelled for various reasons, the intrigue shelved, the questions left hanging.

Now they all land in New York instead, with everything on the line. Spain chasing a second star, Argentina leaning once more on their refusal to accept defeat, and Steve McManaman’s prediction hanging over it all: 3-1 to Spain, “nice and concise”.

On Sunday, we find out if that confidence matches the reality on the pitch.