So much for the script. England, so disciplined for 85 minutes, found themselves undone by the very thing they had denied Argentina all night: a momen...
So much for the script. England, so disciplined for 85 minutes, found themselves undone by the very thing they had denied Argentina all night: a moment of pure, breathtaking chaos. The Three Lions were minutes away from a first World Cup final since 1966. They had stifled Lionel Scaloni's side, forcing them into a low block of their own making, and seemed to have absorbed every punch the holders threw. Then the roof caved in.First came the equaliser. A cross from the right, a slight deflection, and the ball fell perfectly for Lautaro Martinez to steer home from close range. The silence inside the stadium was deafening. England's game management, so meticulous for the preceding hour and a half, had cracked. They had sat deep, inviting pressure that had largely been harmless. But in football, as in life, you can only hold the tide back for so long. Argentina, with their backs to the wall and the roar of their fans ringing in their ears, found the momentum they had been chasing.The cruelest blow landed in the second minute of added time. A quick transitional play, a ball threaded through a tiring midfield, and there was Martinez again. This time, clinical finishing. One touch to control, another to dispatch. The ball nestled in the corner of the net, and with it, the dreams of an England team that had dared to believe this was their year. Was it a failure of nerve or a failure of legs The truth, as ever, lies somewhere in between. They had parked the bus, and the bus had run out of petrol.For Argentina, this is simply what champions do. They find a way when logic says they should be out. England will be left to wonder what might have been, but for neutrals, this was a masterclass in the raw, emotional drama that only this tournament can produce. The tactical flexibility shown by Scaloni in the final 20 minutes turned the game on its head, while Gareth Southgate will face questions about why his side, so dominant in spells, retreated into their shell. It is a painful lesson in the unforgiving nature of knockout football. England's hearts are broken, but Argentina's legend grows.
