Steve McManaman Predicts Spain to Defeat Argentina 3-1 in Final
Spain against Argentina. New York under the lights. A World Cup final with history humming in the background and one former Liverpool winger utterly convinced he knows how it ends.
Steve McManaman, speaking on ESPN FC, did not bother with caveats or tactical essays. He went straight for the headline.
“I’m going 3-1 to Spain. I’ll be nice and concise,” he said, predicting a comfortable win for the reigning European champions on Sunday.
No hesitation. No breakdown of where the game might be won or lost. Just a scoreline and a clear belief that Luis de la Fuente’s side will finish the job.
Spain’s Statement in Dallas
Spain arrive in New York looking and playing like a team ready to reclaim the world. Their semi-final in Dallas was supposed to be a test against the favourites, France, the 2018 world champions and tournament benchmark.
Instead, Spain handled them.
A sharp, controlled 2-0 victory sent France home and Spain into another final, one step from their first World Cup crown since 2010 and only the second in their history. They dictated tempo, shut down French threats, and carried the authority of a side that knows exactly who it is and where it’s going.
That performance clearly weighed heavily in McManaman’s thinking. Spain looked ruthless, modern, and balanced – a team that can keep the ball, press the life out of opponents, and still find the cutting edge when it matters.
Argentina’s Late-Show Specialists
Argentina take a very different route into this final, but one that fits their identity perfectly.
Their semi-final against England was a grind, then a surge. Trailing late to the Euro 2024 finalists, they summoned that familiar defiance. In the final five minutes plus stoppage time, La Albiceleste flipped the script, scoring twice to snatch a 2-1 victory and book their place in Sunday’s showpiece.
It was their seventh win of the tournament, another chapter in a campaign built on resilience, nerve, and an almost stubborn refusal to accept defeat. Argentina don’t always control games. They often control the moments that matter.
That contrast sets up a fascinating clash: Spain’s structure and fluency against Argentina’s relentlessness and late-game drama. McManaman, though, sees the European side having too much.
A Final With Old Wounds in the Background
For all the modern star power on display, there is a thread pulling this final back to 1966.
These two nations have met only once before at a World Cup. That was in England, in the group stage, when Argentina edged Spain 2-1 in a Group 2 match and moved on to the quarter-finals. There, they fell narrowly to the eventual champions, England.
Spain have changed beyond recognition since then, but the record books don’t forget. McManaman believes this version of La Roja will not only chase the trophy, but also quietly relish the chance to overturn that solitary World Cup defeat to La Albiceleste.
The fixture was supposed to be renewed earlier, in the Finalissima scheduled for March – a tantalising meeting between European and South American champions. It never happened. The match was cancelled, the reasons layered and logistical, and the anticipation pushed down the road.
Now the reunion comes on the biggest stage of all.
Spain, hunting a second star on the shirt. Argentina, chasing another chapter in their own storied World Cup history. And Steve McManaman, watching from the studio, convinced that when the noise dies down in New York, the scoreboard will read exactly as he called it: Spain 3, Argentina 1.
