# Kane: Argentina loss hurt more than any other

> England's captain reflects on the World Cup semi-final defeat and what went wrong against the bigger teams.
- Title: Kane: Argentina loss hurt more than any other · the Guardian
- Summary: England's captain reflects on the World Cup semi-final defeat and what went wrong against the bigger teams. Kane says England's loss to Argentina stung most…
- Keywords: harry kane, england, world cup 2026, argentina, semi-final defeat, nations league, spain, thomas tuchel, declan rice, ballon d'or, sports, Kane
- Source: the Guardian — https://theguardian.com/football/2026/sep/23/harry-kane-england-world-cup-argentina-nations-league-spain
- Published: 2026-09-23T18:00:55+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: harry kane, england, world cup 2026, argentina, semi-final defeat, nations league, spain, thomas tuchel, declan rice, ballon d'or, sports
## Kane's deepest tournament pain
England's captain says the World Cup semi-final loss to Argentina hurt more than any other exit, even more than missing a penalty in Qatar, because of how the team lost their way.

> It wasn't the team that we wanted to be and said we'd be.
## Losing their way after going ahead
England went 1-0 up in the 55th minute but barely touched the ball after that, losing 2-1 and playing nothing like themselves.
## The pain of losing your way
Kane says losing while playing against your beliefs feels ten times worse than accepting defeat when you've played your way.

> If we lose doing it our way you accept it, take it on the chin and move on.
## A journey of near-misses
Kane has been to finals and semi-finals but keeps falling short, and each loss hurts differently. This one ranks as his most painful.

> Each one hurts in a different way and this one hurt, for sure, more than any other one.
## No time to heal in football
Kane must process the loss while preparing for Spain in the Nations League on Saturday. The schedule doesn't allow for proper recovery time.

> You have to heal while getting on with it. In football, you don't have time.
## Why England fails against the best
Kane says England must figure out why they repeatedly fall short in knockout stages against top teams, even though they play well in qualifying.

> It's something that we haven't quite been able to do in latter stages of tournaments against the bigger and better nations.
## Tuchel's message: fine-tune, don't restart
New manager Thomas Tuchel told the squad to continue building on what's working rather than start fresh after the World Cup.
## Key players missing from Nations League
Declan Rice, Cole Palmer, Kobbie Mainoo, Marcus Rashford and Tino Livramento are out. Rice's absence is for load management due to ongoing hamstring nerve pain.
## Kane closing in on Shilton's record
Kane is four caps away from Peter Shilton's all-time England record of 125 appearances and could match it during this international window.
## Kane's future beyond football
The 33-year-old is close to extending his Bayern Munich contract and has mused about MLS, becoming an NFL kicker, or turning pro at golf.

> Maybe if I am in the MLS in the future or somewhere like that, it might be a thing where you could connect the two.
## Key takeaway

Kane says England's loss to Argentina stung most because they abandoned their identity and playing style, not just because they lost.