David Batty Shuns Football 22 Years After 2004 Retirement, Choosing Family Life

Q: Why has Lionel Messi, after 205 games, never faced England in his international career until now?

Lionel Messi had never faced England before this 2026 World Cup semi-final mainly because the one realistic early chance was lost to suspension, and after that the two countries simply did not meet again. Messi made his senior Argentina debut in August 2005 and was sent off within minutes against Hungary. That suspension ruled him out of Argentina’s next match against England, a friendly in November 2005 in Geneva. That game turned out to be the last England-Argentina meeting for more than two decades. After that, tournament paths never aligned. In some World Cups, England and Argentina were placed on opposite sides of the knockout bracket, meaning they could only have met in the final. In others, one of the teams went out too early: England failed to escape the group stage in 2014, Argentina exited in the last 16 in 2018, and England’s quarter-final loss in 2022 prevented any possible meeting with Argentina later in the tournament. There were also no friendlies arranged between the sides after 2005, despite the rivalry’s history. So even though Messi reached 205 international appearances and played 62 different nations, England remained the missing opponent. In short, it was a mix of bad timing, Messi’s 2005 suspension, knockout-draw mechanics, and the absence of any England-Argentina fixture for 21 years.

3 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jul 15

Batty, now 57, has stayed almost entirely out of public view since retiring in 2004, with former Leeds team-mates saying many have not seen him since their playing days.
The ex-England midfielder with 42 caps had long signalled he would not return through coaching, media or ambassador roles, instead planning to devote his time to family life in Yorkshire.
That retreat has fueled rumours about his whereabouts, but people close to him describe a consistent pattern: a private figure who avoided football’s spotlight even during his career.
Batty’s low-key retirement has only deepened his cult status, with former team-mates recalling a tough, reliable midfielder who commuted home to his children and remains content away from the game.