Argentina stun England with late comeback to reach World Cup final

Argentina produced a dramatic late turnaround to beat England 2-1 and book their place in the World Cup final, overturning Anthony Gordon’s opener with goals from Enzo Fernández and Lautaro Martínez in the closing minutes.

England

• Jordan Lee Pickford (6.3)
• Reece Lewis James (6.9)
• John Stones (6.7)
• Addji Keaninkin Marc-Israel Guéhi (6.5)
• Diop Tehuti Djed-Hotep Spence (6.6)
• Declan Rice (7.2)
• Elliot Anderson (7.3)
• Morgan Elliot Rogers (7.2)
• Jude Victor William Bellingham (6.7)
• Anthony Michael Gordon (7)
• Harry Edward Kane (6.3)

Argentina

Damián Emiliano Martínez Romero (6.6)

Nahuel Molina Lucero (6.2)

Cristian Gabriel Romero (7.2)

Lisandro Martínez (6.5)

Nicolás Alejandro Tagliafico (6.2)

Leandro Daniel Paredes (7.2)

Giuliano Simeone Baldini (6.2)

Enzo Jeremías Fernández (7.6)

Alexis Mac Allister (6.2)

Julián Álvarez (6.6)

Lionel Andrés Messi Cuccittini (8)

Substitutions:

England

• Anthony Michael Gordon (Ezri Konsa Ngoyo, 72)
• Reece Lewis James (Daniel Johnson Burn, 82)
• Declan Rice (Nico OReilly, 82)
• John Stones (Ivan Benjamin Elijah Toney, 90)
• Diop Tehuti Djed-Hotep Spence (Marcus Rashford, 90)

Argentina

• Leandro Daniel Paredes (Nicolás Iván González, 64)
• Giuliano Simeone Baldini (Rodrigo Javier De Paul, 72)
• Nahuel Molina Lucero (Gonzalo Ariel Montiel, 72)
• Lisandro Martínez (Nicolás Hernán Gonzalo Otamendi, 72)
• Nicolás Alejandro Tagliafico (Lautaro Javier Martínez, 81)

Ball possession:

Lionel Scaloni’s side, who dominated possession and territory for long spells, trailed until the 85th minute before finally breaking England’s resistance. Fernández drove in a low equaliser, and Martínez then struck in the 90th minute to complete a ruthless comeback and end England’s hopes of a first World Cup final since 1966.

Passes:

England, who had defended stoutly for most of the semi-final, were left devastated after coming within five minutes of extra time. Gareth Southgate’s team were outshot and outplayed for large periods, but had seemed on course for another narrow knockout win before Argentina’s late surge.

Defense:

### Argentina dominate ball, England punished late

Face-to-face:

Argentina controlled the rhythm of the semi-final with 64% possession, forcing England deep for long stretches and consistently probing around the edge of the penalty area.

Fouls:

Yellow cards:

Top 5 World Cup scorers:

1. Kylian Mbappé Lottin (4)
2. Masour Ousmane Dembélé (4)
3. Harry Edward Kane (3)
4. Jude Victor William Bellingham (3)
5. Lautaro Javier Martínez (3)

Line-ups:

Next games:

• England will play with France. July 18 at 21:00 (GMT), on None.
• Argentina will play with Spain. July 19 at 19:00 (GMT), on None.