London [UK], July 17: England captain Harry Kane admitted trying to hold on to a 1-0 lead backfired as their World Cup hopes were ended by Argentina's late show in a 2-1 semi-final defeat in Atlanta.
Anthony Gordon fired England into a 55th-minute lead but Argentina kept building pressure and this time Thomas Tuchel's substitutions did not work as Lionel Messi laid on late goals for Enzo Fernandez and Lautaro Martinez to turn it around.
Speaking to BBC Sport, Kane said: "I'm gutted. I'm gutted for the boys, I'm gutted for everyone, the team, the staff, the fans. We played a good game for the large majority of it.
"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.
"We worked so hard to be here. The lads have given every last bit of running, sweat, blood, tears, whatever it is, so to fall short like today is just gutting."
Kane insisted the message from Tuchel and his staff was to keep pushing after Gordon's goal, but it felt as though England increasingly retreated, inviting the pressure which Argentina turned to their advantage.
"We struggled to get pressure on the ball (after the goal)," he said.
"I thought especially in the first half and at the start of the second half we pressed them well, put them under loads of pressure, especially high up the pitch which allowed us to win balls and control the game a little bit better.
"After the goal, whether they were putting more men forward or us not being able to match them man-to-man it was just wave after wave. The lads were putting blocks in but in the end it was not enough.
"The boys were always ready for any moment in the game. When we went ahead the messaging was to go again and get another goal. Once they scored their two goals it was to try and find something but we couldn't find any momentum to get back in the game."
Kane added: "We've had a lot of good moments in this tournament. We've had a lot of good games, another semi-final. We talk about knocking on the door. We're close. We just need to find that missing piece.
"These tournaments take it out of you. There's so much effort, pressure, mentality. We've shown a lot of that in the last six, seven weeks we've been together. We're just missing that final piece."
Refuses to 'put a limit' on World Cup career
Kane also hinted he wants to play at another World Cup. The Bayern Munich striker referenced 39-year-old Lionel Messi and does not want to "put a limit" on his career.
"It's too early to talk about that. I mean, as a person, it's always just about taking it year by year and how I feel," he said.
"The national team is my pride and joy. It's what I love to do most, more than anything.
"Obviously, four years is a long way away. I'm 33 in the summer, but as you saw on the other end with Messi there, he's still performing at the highest level.
"So, I never want to put a limit on these things.
"I'll address every situation as they come, but for now it's just about processing another tough loss with this team."
England play the much-maligned third-place play-off against France in Miami on Saturday as they close their tournament on a low. But they are back in action in just two and a half months as they begin their Nations League campaign against World Cup finalists Spain.
"There's not much to say for now," said Kane. "Everyone has to process what's just happened.
"Everyone's gutted. I'm gutted for all the boys, all the staff, everyone behind the scenes, because we know how much everyone puts into being a successful national team.
"And when you're so close, when you're 10-plus minutes away, and it slips out of your hands like that, obviously the lads are devastated.
"Now we just have to take it on the chin. There's nothing we can do. We go away and try to improve."
Source: Qatar Tribune