Harry Kane: Argentina Defeat My Most Painful England Exit

Harry Kane has called England's 2-1 World Cup semi-final defeat by Argentina his most painful exit from a major tournament.

The England captain said it hurt even more than his missed penalty in the 2-1 quarter-final loss to France at Qatar 2022, The Guardian reported.

It still stings. England led in the 55th minute of the semi-final and looked bound for the final. Then came two late Argentina goals to turn the game and end England's run.

Kane was speaking ahead of England's return to action against Spain at Wembley on Saturday night in the Nations League, UEFA's biennial competition for national teams. The 32-year-old goes into the game as captain and, according to one preview, a Ballon d'Or favourite.

The tie starts a busy stretch. After Spain, England travel to face Czechia and Croatia before returning to Wembley to play Czechia again.

Thomas Tuchel addressed the squad at St George's Park on Tuesday. His message was to continue what had been built at the World Cup and fine-tune the details.

Kane has backed Tuchel to learn from the Argentina defeat. The manager was stung by criticism after the semi-final, but has kept the backing of his senior players.

Tuchel will have to manage without five withdrawals for the upcoming fixtures. Declan Rice, Cole Palmer, Kobbie Mainoo, Marcus Rashford and Tino Livramento have all pulled out.

England named a 27-man squad for the four-game window between 21 September and 6 October, England Football confirmed. The run of four matches between 26 September and 6 October is followed by two more in November.

For fans, this is the strange part of football grief. One night in the summer can live in the body for months. Kane admitted as much, and Saturday offers the first chance to replace that memory with something louder at Wembley.