England suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 defeat to Argentina in the World Cup semi-final on Wednesday night, as two goals in seven minutes from Enzo Fernández and Lautaro Martínez snatched victory from the Three Lions. Argentina will now face Spain in the final on Sunday in New York, with Lionel Messi providing assists for both goals in what is expected to be his final World Cup appearance.
Gordon's opener not enough
Anthony Gordon had given England the lead in the 55th minute, putting them on track for their first men's World Cup final since 1966. However, manager Thomas Tuchel's decision to adopt defensive tactics after the goal backfired. He substituted Gordon in the 72nd minute and brought on three defenders—Ezri Konsa, Dan Burn, and Nico O'Reilly—switching to a 5-3-2 formation to protect the lead.
Argentina pushed forward relentlessly, and their pressure paid off in the 85th minute when Enzo Fernández equalised with a superb strike from the edge of the penalty area. Then, in injury time, Lautaro Martínez scored the winner with a close-range header, sparking jubilant celebrations among the Argentine players and fans.
Tuchel defends substitutions
Tuchel faced criticism for his defensive approach but defended his decisions. "We decided to go to a back five because the gaps were too big and [we had to] be strong in the air," he said. "Straight after the goal, with no substitutions, we conceded far too many crosses. We tried to help the players, but the responsibility is on the coach." He added, "No regrets, not at the moment. We were very close, we deserved to be 1-0 up—we played one of our better matches [up to that point], maybe our best match."
Kane's heartbreak
Captain Harry Kane, who is on six goals before England's third-place playoff against France on Saturday, expressed his devastation. "Once we went 1-0 up we seemed to just try to hold on, which at this level is not enough," he told the BBC. "I'm just gutted for the boys, gutted for everyone, the team, the staff, the fans. We played a good game for the large majority of it." He added, "We had a lot of good moments in this tournament. A lot of good games. Another semi-final. We talk about knocking on the door. We are close, we just need to find that missing piece in the final stage of the tournament."
Messi's final flourish
Messi, 38, was the orchestrator of Argentina's comeback, providing the assists for both goals. After the final whistle, he led the celebrations as Argentine players displayed a banner reading "Las Malvinas son Argentinas" ("the Falkland Islands are Argentinian"), a reference to the historical enmity between the two nations. The gesture may lead to disciplinary action from Fifa.
England's tournament in review
England's World Cup campaign included a heroic win against Mexico with 10 men in the Azteca Stadium and an extra-time victory against Norway in Miami. Despite the semi-final defeat, Tuchel insisted the team had performed well. "We were very close, we deserved to be 1-0 up—we played one of our better matches," he said. England will now face France in the third-place playoff on Saturday.
