​Lionel Messi has received just three red cards in his illustrious 21-year professional career – but one of them meant he missed out on an international appearance against England.Argentina captain Messi, now with 205 caps and 125 goals to his name, will face the Three Lions for the first time in his career on Wednesday night in a blockbuster World Cup semi-final in Atlanta.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementFor all their history at World Cups, England and Argentina haven’t actually faced each other – competitively or otherwise – since a friendly in November 2005.Michael Owen scored a late double for a 3-2 England win over Argentina in November 2005 (Getty)It was a terrific encounter, with England striker Michael Owen the match-winner with two late goals to seal a 3-2 England win amid dramatic scenes on neutral territory in Geneva.But what is most extraordinary, in the context of Wednesday’s showdown, is that Messi would otherwise have featured in that match. However, he was suspended.The Barcelona winger, then 18, made his debut for Argentina in August 2005, a few months after starring for his country’s victorious under-20 side in the Fifa World Youth Championship.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMessi was introduced as a 63rd-minute substitute against Hungary in Budapest; an ironic opponent, given Messi’s career comparisons to Diego Maradona, whose own Argentina debut also came against Hungary.Yet just 47 seconds after entering the fray, Messi sped away from Hungary’s Vilmos Vanczak, who then grabbed the teenager’s shirt. However, a stray elbow saw Messi receive the first red card of his career from German referee Markus Merk.Replays show that there was perhaps the faintest of touches, if there was a touch at all.South American football expert Tim Vickery wrote of the incident for the BBC: “His red card was a crime against football. Messi burst past a defender, who grabbed on to his shirt to hold him back.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“Messi used his arm to try to wriggle free. There was no elbow, no violence – just an attempt to get on with the game. But the defender fell as if pole-axed, and out came the red card.“This was a hard-fought friendly. There were some rugged tackles, and some blatant dives. Messi did none of this. He made no attempt to cheat.“He was the victim of anti-football, and yet he was the one sent off. It is hard to think of a refereeing decision more contrary to the spirit of the game.”Another coincidence, so to speak, is that Lionel Scaloni – Messi’s current head coach with Argentina – was one of the players protesting against the decision in the face of the referee that day in Budapest.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementOf the incident, Messi said at the time: “He came through me and had hold of me and I wanted to break free, but the referee interpreted it as though I had tried to shove him away.”I went on with a lot of time left in the game, but then what happened,