England captain admits familiar pain after Argentina defeat
Harry Kane says England are still "missing that final piece of the jigsaw" following their gut-wrenching 2-1 defeat to Argentina in the 2026 World Cup semi-final.
The Three Lions took the lead through Anthony Gordon in Atlanta but late goals from Enzo Fernandez and Lautaro Martinez sent Argentina through to the final.
"No words are big enough right now to overcome this empty feeling in the stomach," Kane wrote on social media. "We were close, really close to another final but it wasn't enough. We've given everything over these last seven weeks and to fall short is hard to take! I know the expectations are high and rightly so, we've been knocking on the door for eight years now but again are missing that final piece of the jigsaw! That's where we have to go away, process it and find a way to get better."
Defensive collapse under scrutiny
Manager Thomas Tuchel has come under fire after England retreated following Gordon's 55th-minute opener. From that point until Argentina's winning goal in stoppage time, England saw just 12% of possession, a statistic that has intensified criticism of the team's game management.
Former England captain Wayne Rooney accused Tuchel's side of "crumbling" and becoming "too passive". BBC Sport sources indicate that several key players were left disappointed by the approach in the closing stages.
Tuchel, however, insisted that dropping deep was not the plan. "It's maybe not in our DNA…to control the game and ball," he said.
A recurring nightmare
This is not the first time England have been accused of failing to see out a lead under pressure. Under previous boss Gareth Southgate, similar scenarios played out in the Euro 2021 final against Italy, the 2018 World Cup semi-final against Croatia, and the Euro 2024 final versus Spain.
Kane, who finished the tournament with six goals, remained defiant. "Going for glory doesn't always mean you will get it. You have to fight for it, get knocked down, pick yourself up and go again," he added.
Third-place play-off awaits
England now turn their attention to the third-place match against France on Saturday (22:00 BST). The squad will hope to sign off the tournament with a win before starting the inevitable inquest into how to finally break their semi-final curse.
