​That hurt. There is no other way to put it. For 84 minutes in Atlanta, England had one foot in their first World Cup final on foreign soil. Thomas Tuchel’s tactical setup worked almost to perfection, choking the supply lines and turning the reigning world champions into a frustrated, petulant mess. When Morgan Rogers put it on a plate for Anthony Gordon to side-foot home after 55 minutes, the dream felt real.Then, Lionel Messi happened.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIt is the same old story. You can keep him quiet for nearly the entire game, but genius only needs a split second. In the 85th minute, he found Enzo Fernandez, who unleashed an absolute thunderbolt from distance. Equaliser. Then, with extra time looming in the 93rd minute, a trademark slide-rule pass found substitute Lautaro Martinez. He made no mistake. From total control to absolute collapse in eight minutes. Argentina are off to face Spain on Sunday, while England are heading home to lick their wounds.The Aston Villa stopper had a surprisingly quiet evening regarding actual saves. England did not test him constantly, but he dominated his penalty area well during a barrage of late set-pieces. Gordon’s close-range finish left him completely helpless.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementA miserable night for the right-back. He fell asleep for the England goal, completely losing track of Gordon, who sneaked in behind him. Scaloni saw enough and subbed him after 71 minutes.He lived dangerously. The Tottenham defender picked up an early second-half yellow card for a trademark reckless tackle. He did, however, use his physical strength to keep Harry Kane quiet when it mattered.The Manchester United man struggled against England’s directness. A yellow card in the first half for stopping a counter-attack summed up his struggles. He looked tired and was taken off before the end.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementA costly error. He failed to clear the long ball that started the move for Gordon’s goal. He offered almost nothing going forward and was sacrificed late on.A surprise selection on the wing. He showed plenty of willingness and ran hard, but his final ball was poor, and he was caught offside during a promising first-half counter.He looked completely lost in a chaotic first half. Jude Bellingham ran straight past him on several occasions. It was no surprise when he was taken off after an hour.He had to do the ugly work. The Liverpool man fought hard in the midfield battle against Declan Rice, helping his team keep hold of the ball once England dropped back to protect their lead.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementHe was lucky not to be booked early on for a poor challenge on Elliot Anderson. But his late moment of brilliance was pure theatre, stepping up to smash home a sensational 25-yard equaliser.ATLANTA, GEORGIA – JULY 15: Lionel Messi #10 of Argentina celebrates the team’s second goal by Lautaro Martinez #22 during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Semi Final ma