History has a cruel way of repeating itself for England. Eight years after watching Croatia snatch away their World Cup dream in 2018, the Three Lions suffered an agonisingly similar fate at the hands of Argentina in the 2026 semi-final.
England looked to be on course for their first men's World Cup final since 1966 when Anthony Gordon converted Morgan Rogers' cross in the 55th minute in Atlanta. But goals from Enzo Fernandez and a devastating injury-time strike from Lautaro Martinez in the 92nd minute turned elation into despair.
Newcastle defender Dan Burn, who came off the bench in the second half with England protecting their lead, captured the dressing room mood perfectly. "Gutted. Absolutely gutted," he said. "We nailed the gameplan pretty well. To go 1-0 up... then we got too passive, conceded too many crosses and too many chances. When you're playing a team of that quality, it is going to cost you. This will haunt me for a long time, I think."
England had shown remarkable resilience in the knockout rounds before this collapse — overcoming Mexico 3-2 in the last 16 despite playing most of the second half with 10 men, then holding firm to beat Norway 2-1 in the quarter-finals. When asked why that defensive resolve deserted them against the holders, Burn pointed to the weight of history.
"It is human nature [to be nervous] when you're that close to doing something you haven't done since '66 and be in a final," he said. "Argentina have done that and got that confidence. The last few games we have been able to defend the box so well. We thought we could do that again, but we weren't as tight in the box as we would have liked."
Captain Harry Kane was equally devastated. "When you're so close, 10 minutes away, and it slips out of your hands like that, obviously the lads are devastated," said Kane. "We did so well for 60 minutes. We scored and deserved to be ahead then we struggled to keep the ball, struggled to put pressure on the ball and it allowed them to create more momentum and chances in the final third."
Kane identified a recurring pattern in England's tournament disappointments. "We're going to have to find out how we can improve in those situations. It's been probably the missing piece now for probably the past four or five tournaments," he said.
The Bayern Munich striker has scored six goals at this World Cup and remains in contention for the Golden Boot, though both Lionel Messi — who assisted both Argentina goals — and France's Kylian Mbappe sit on eight. Kane, who turns 33 later this month, refused to rule out playing at the 2030 World Cup but was cautious about committing.
"It's too early to talk about that — for me it's about taking it year by year," he said. "The national team is my pride and joy, it's what I love to do most. Four years is a long way away and I'm 33 in the summer, but as you see with Leo [Messi], he's still performing at the highest level [at 39]. For now it's about processing another tough loss."
Jude Bellingham, who also has six goals in the tournament, expressed frustration at delivering the same message to England supporters once again. "I wanted to be part of an England squad that finally did it and finally got it over the line," said the Real Madrid midfielder. "To be here telling the fans the same things they have heard for years and years, it's really gutting. The lads did everything they could over the course of the tournament — I can't fault the effort and the fight."
Head coach Thomas Tuchel, who retains the backing of the Football Association and is expected to lead England into Euro 2028, admitted he was surprised his team couldn't see the game out. "We went 1-0 up but it totally turned the momentum in their favour," he told BBC Radio 5 Live. "They took all the risks after. They played totally free after that with all the risks and a lot of quality. They made offensive substitutions and suddenly had four players in the forward line and we couldn't stop the crosses."
Tuchel described a total collapse in physical dominance after the opening goal. "We were basically not physical enough. We couldn't win duels and we couldn't get hold of the ball. It was a total momentum shift from our goal. The conviction and the self-confidence after going 1-0 up was just not there."
England have now fallen at the semi-final stage in two of the last three World Cups and lost European Championship finals in both 2021 and 2024. Asked whether his side are capable of winning a major trophy, Tuchel was defiant. "Yes, of course we are, even if I have no proof of that at the moment. In big defeats it's important to take them with respect, digest them, stick together and second of all it's about the reaction to it."
England now face France in Saturday's third-place play-off at 22:00 BST, live on the BBC, before turning their attention to co-hosting Euro 2028 — a tournament they must still qualify for. Burn struck a note of pride despite the pain. "I am still very proud of what we have done at this World Cup," he said. "I don't think anyone really gave us a chance. We have done a lot of good, and honestly I thought we were going to do it."