Thomas Tuchel accepted responsibility for England’s overly cautious approach after taking the lead, as Argentina shattered their World Cup hopes with a stunning late comeback.
England were moments away from a first men’s World Cup final on foreign soil after Anthony Gordon put them ahead early in the second half. The defending champions levelled through a thunderous strike from Enzo Fernández before substitute Lautaro Martínez scored the decisive goal deep in stoppage time to send Argentina through to Sunday’s final against Spain in New York.
At the final whistle, England’s players collapsed to the ground; captain Harry Kane led them over to the travelling supporters to thank them for their backing, while Jude Bellingham wiped away tears. There was a completely different scene for Lionel Messi, who dropped to his knees and punched the air in delight as Argentina’s second consecutive final was confirmed.
Tuchel, who chose to withdraw Declan Rice and Reece James three minutes before Fernández’s equaliser as England shifted to a back five, could not hide his disappointment and admitted he had played a part in England’s downfall.
“We decided to switch to a back five because the spaces were far too big,” Tuchel said. “Argentina took more risks, found more rhythm and played with the sense that they had nothing left to lose, which freed them up and pushed us back. We, on the other hand, suddenly played with the feeling that we had a great deal to lose. Of course the responsibility lies with the coach, and if it doesn’t work out it’s easy to say the decision was wrong.”
Asked whether England’s habit of surrendering leads was a question of mentality, he replied: “I don’t really believe in some English curse or anything like that. It has repeated itself in different moments, with different coaches, different players, different situations.
“What hurt us today was that we weren’t proactive enough in any structure. I understand these debates will happen and of course a million coaches know better after the match. You can discuss it with a million coaches. I have to make a call on the pitch. That’s how I analyse the game and I take the responsibility.
“At this moment, no regrets. The team gave everything and we were very, very close. We deserved to be 1-0 up. We played one of our better matches, perhaps our best under the circumstances. The team was outstanding – we just couldn’t get over the line.”
England managed only 12% possession between Gordon’s goal and the winning strike, and Kane felt they had been overwhelmed by Argentina.
“Absolutely gutted, gutted for the lads, gutted for everyone: the team, the staff, the fans,” he said in a television interview. “We played well for the vast majority. Once we went 1-0 up we just seemed to try to hold on which, at this level, is not enough. After the goal, whether it was them throwing more bodies forward or our inability to match them man for man, it just became wave after wave and we were simply trying to cling on and put blocks in, but in the end it wasn’t enough.”
Jude Bellingham appeared to hit Valentín Barco on the back of the head after the match. Photograph: Michael Zemanek/Shutterstock
Bellingham seemed to strike Argentina substitute Valentín Barco on the back of the head after the game had finished and had to be pulled away by reserve goalkeepers Dean Henderson and James Trafford. He was not sanctioned by the officials.
Manchester United defender Lisandro Martínez celebrated on the pitch after the match with a banner reading “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” (“The Malvinas are Argentinian”), a reference to the Falklands conflict.
Argentina had previously come from two goals down to beat Egypt in the last 16, and Lautaro Martínez said the team had once again never given up. “England pressed hard for about 60 minutes. After finding the goal, they dropped back, and that gave us more composure to circulate the ball and spread the play.”
An emotional Lionel Scaloni praised his side’s fighting spirit. “This team plays at its best when facing adversity,” Argentina’s head coach said. “We had a difficult situation, there was blood in the water and we went for it. We had six or seven chances and the ball just wouldn’t go in, but the team fought until the end. After they scored, we truly showed what we are about – it demonstrates what football means to us and it goes beyond tactics.”
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