England has been in this position before, but never quite as close. The Three Lions were just five minutes of normal time from reaching the World Cup final on Wednesday evening in Atlanta before it all fell apart. Truthfully, it had started to unravel long before the 85th minute.The first half of the semifinal at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta was essentially a write off—a bitty, nervy scrap that produced a combined xG of 0.07 but 19 fouls, with Argentina’s Giuliano Simeone, in his first start of the knockouts, making it a personal mission to ensure as little soccer as possible was played.Argentina came out determined to stifle England and wait for the right moment to strike. England, too, was happy to ride out the battle, revel in the blocks, headers and duels, avoid getting drawn out and, above all, stay calm. The second half could not have been more different. England’s goal came from its first real chance, with Anthony Gordon catching Nicolás Tagliafico sleeping at the back post to steal in and convert Morgan Rogers cross from unmissable range.The moment changed the course of the game and the tournament.Argentina Ascends, England CollapsesEngland appeared unable to respond to Argentina’s onslaught. | Charlotte Wilson/Offside/Offside via Getty ImagesAfter Gordon’s goal, Argentina awakened and England shrank.Over the next 40 minutes and change, La Albiceleste produced wave after wave of attack on England’s goal, with Lionel Messi leading the charge as Havoc-Wreaker in Chief.Only Enzo Fernández had more touches than Messi’s 94, while the 39-year-old also created the most chances of any player (4), completed the most dribbles (10) and had the most touches in the opposition box (6).The late-show element of the defeat is soul crushing for England—the stuff of children’s nightmares—but the reality is that when Fernández’s equaliser ripped past Jordan Pickford, it felt like a long time coming.Though occasionally suspect with the ball at his feet, England’s No.1 was in fine shot-stopping form during the second half, making at least two world-class saves before Argentina’s eventual breakthrough. In addition, Alexis Mac Allister had thumped one off the post and substitute Nicolás González had headed wide in the minutes before Fernández struck gold.England, meanwhile, could not get a toehold.Cabo Verde, Egypt and Switzerland all found serious joy on the break against Argentina, exploiting Lionel Scaloni’s side’s defensive frailties through the lack of width and pace. England didn’t even try.England’s Nightmare Collapse in NumbersJude Bellingham and Harry Kane created zero chances in the match and had a combined xG of 0.03. Kane had zero touches in the opposition area.England had just 12% possession between Gordon’s goal and Argentina’s winner.Argentina completed 147 of 155 passes in the same time period.Declan Rice was the only England player to complete a dribble after the opening goal in the 55th minute.Gordon, England’s goalscorer and best out-ball, was Thomas Tuchel’s first sub, replaced by defender Ezri Konsa after just over 70 minutes. Harry Kane battled hard in a deep role, but left a gaping hole that was crying out for a target man to at least attempt to hold up the ball and prevent Argentina from simply coming back again like a ball on a string.Tuchel’s next two changes, with just over ten minutes to play were both defenders—Dan Burn and Nico O’Reilly—with England clearly setting up to attempt to weather the storm and do no more. Attack vs. Defense.As shared widely on social media, England's number of accurate passes in an 18-minute period between the 66th minute and 84th was just two. From minute 67 to 92, England held 7.5% possession. The numbers are staggering for professional soccer, let alone a World Cup semifinal.The Messi FactorMessi will play in a third World Cup final. | Erick W. Rasco/Sports IllustratedEngland was able to ride out games with backs-to-the-wall displays in previous rounds against Mexico and Norway, but this was very different.With all due respect Julián Quiñones and Antonio Nusa, they aren’t Lionel Messi.It seems an obvious point to make, but you simply cannot invite the greatest player who ever lived to take his best shot at you for 40 minutes. England’s tactics felt almost wilfully naive in Atlanta—the worst of Gareth Southgate era caution, combined with the fear-stricken failure to meet the moment of the Sven-Göran Eriksson years.After a dormant opening 45, Messi turned it on after the break, taking up residence in what, on a teamsheet, would look more like a right-wing-back’s position.He darted, dashed, floated, dinked and carved his way through the defensive block, with England only able to hold back the tide for so long. His second assist, for Lautaro Martínez to head home, was typically exquisite.With the vote taking place before the final, he has surely just sealed the tournament’s Golden Ball trophy.Tuchel’s Tactics Follow Familiar Pattern of FailureThomas Tuchel has come under fire after the semifinal loss. | Ryan Pierse/FIFA/Getty ImagesBilled as a smarter, braver tactician able to break England out of its cycle, Tuchel’s path to elimination at this tournament follows an old formula.England’s passivity and failure to seize the moment after going a goal up will be poured over for years to come. The match marks the third occasion since 2018 that England have let a lead slip in a semifinal or final of a major tournament.England is the only nation in the 21st century to score first in a World Cup semifinal but not win the match, with this defeat following the one to Croatia eight years ago in Russia.After the match, a bullish Tuchel defended his decisions to go defensive early: “You can discuss this with a million coaches (but) I have to make a decision on the pitch. “I analyzed the match and I did it a certain way so that’s my responsibility. In the moment, no regrets. The team gave everything and we were very, very close. We deserved to be up 1-0.”He added: “We decided to go to a back five because the gaps were far too open.“Argentina played with more risk, played with more rhythm and played with the feeling maybe that they had nothing to lose any more, which freed them up and pulled us back. Because we obviously played suddenly with a feeling that we had a lot to lose. Of course the responsibility is on the coach and if it doesn’t go well it’s easy to say it was wrong.”Reports claim that Tuchel has the FA’s backing despite the manner of the elimination. His contract runs until the conclusion of the 2028 European Championship to be held in the United Kingdom and Ireland. However, there are signs that his players were left feeling they might’ve done more.“We should have carried on pushing,” Marc Guéhi lamented to the BBC post-match, while captain Kane told reporters: “Once we went 1-0 up we seemed to just try and hold on which at this level is just not enough, so I'm gutted.”Where Do England Go From Here?Will Harry Kane get another chance to win a World Cup? | Erick W. Rasco/Sports IllustratedArgentina marches on into the final, while England now are faced with the least desired game in the entirety of international soccer: the “Bronze Final”—better known as the third-place playoff—which will take place against France on Saturday in Miami.Beyond that, it will be a case of regrouping and going again. The continual phrase used by players, fans and pundits is that “it’ll come”, but with the wait for a major trophy now extended beyond the 60-year mark, the question remains: when?Bellingham, Kane, Rice and more are regular winners with their club sides—as were the original ”Golden Generation” twenty years before—but international success remains a block.Asked about the next World Cup in 2030, Kane did not rule out another tilt at the big one, but it does seem like we may have already seen the best of the striker in an England shirt.“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],” he said.Before the 2030 tournament comes around, the Three Lions will surely be among the favorites for the European Championships on home soil in two years time. First though, there is plenty of introspection and learning to be done.As Kane puts it, “For now, it's about processing another tough loss.”READ THE LATEST WORLD CUP NEWS, ANALYSIS AND INSIGHT FROM SI FCAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow