Argentina scored two late goals on Wednesday to eliminate England 2-1 and advance to the 2026 World Cup final against Spain on Sunday.
Anthony Gordon gave England the lead in the 55th minute, after a period of Argentine domination at the start of the second half.
Argentina, who overturned a two-goal deficit against Egypt during the last 16, simply reset and plugged away. England went instinctive and sat back.
That ploy worked against Mexico in the last 16 at the Estadio Azteca when they were down to 10 men. Here, on the cusp of their first World Cup final since 1966, with 11 men, the option was questionable – especially with Lionel Messi on form for Argentina.
In for the kill
England's first warning came in the 69th minute. Messi sent over a cross from the right wing and Nico Gonzalez headed the ball goalwards but the England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford got down to push it away.
Seven minutes later Alexis Mac Allister's header beat Pickford, but hit the post.
With six minutes remaining, Messi slid a pass from the right wing along to Enzo Fernandez. And from 22 metres out, the midfielder unleashed a shot that flew past Pickford into the net for the equaliser.
England recoiled further and Argentina went for the kill.
Moments after Mac Allister drilled a low shot against the post, the ball found its way back to Messi who went past England defender Nico O’Reilly and curled over a cross towards the far post.
It was just too high for England defender John Stones but perfect for Lautaro Martinez, who had nudged in front of Reece James. His header gave Pickford no chance for heroics.
'We were so close'
"We were so close," said England boss Thomas Tuchel. "But we couldn't keep the level after we scored. We deserved to be up 1-0 ... we got passive."
England will now travel to Miami for the third place play-off on Saturday against France, who lost the first semi-final to Spain on Tuesday night in Dallas.
At Sunday's final Argentina will test their powers against a Spain side that has conceded only once in seven games.
"We will enjoy the victory," said Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni. "Everybody should be thanking the players. This group is difficult to explain. Honestly, I know that everyone recognises how special this team is. This is all thanks to them. I want to thank them."
At the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, Argentina will attempt to become only the third national squad, after Italy and Brazil, to claim back to back titles in the 96-year history of the competition.
