Harry Kane admitted England failed to maintain their attacking approach after taking the lead as Argentina produced a dramatic late comeback to reach the World Cup final.
The England captain was left devastated after Thomas Tuchel’s side lost 2-1 in Atlanta, despite appearing on course to reach the country’s first men’s World Cup final since 1966.
Anthony Gordon put England ahead in the 55th minute, but Argentina dominated the closing stages. Enzo Fernández equalised in the 85th minute before Lautaro Martínez headed home Lionel Messi’s cross two minutes into stoppage time.
Kane left gutted by late collapse
According to TV 2 Sport’s live coverage of the semi-final, Kane told BBC that England had become too concerned with protecting their narrow advantage.
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“I’m just gutted,” Kane said. “Gutted for the boys, gutted for everyone. The England staff, the fans.
“We played a good game for the large majority of it. When we went 1-0 up, we seemed to just try and hold on which at this level isn’t enough.
“Just gutted because we have worked so hard to be here. The lads have given every last bit of running, sweat, blood, tears. To fall short like we did today is just gutting.”
England had pressed Argentina effectively during the first half and at the beginning of the second, but the balance of the match changed sharply after Gordon’s goal.
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Argentina pushed more players forward, while England dropped increasingly deep and struggled to relieve the pressure. Jordan Pickford and his defenders resisted several attacks, but the defending champions eventually found a way through.
Tuchel wanted a second goal
Kane also rejected the suggestion that England had been instructed to defend their lead. As described by England Football in its account of his post-match reaction, Tuchel’s message had been to continue attacking.
“When we went ahead, the messaging was to go again and get another goal,” Kane said.
Instead, England lost control of the ball and allowed Argentina to build wave after wave of pressure. Tuchel later acknowledged that his team had become too passive, although he defended the substitutions that saw England move towards a more defensive shape.
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The defeat means Argentina will face Spain in Sunday’s final, while England must recover in time for the third-place play-off against France.
For Kane and his teammates, however, the immediate feeling was one of a major opportunity allowed to slip away.
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