Declan Rice stood in the Miami night, a bronze medal around his neck, and declared it a fact: “This is the best England group for a very long time. That’s a fact. No-one can take that away from us.”
England’s 6-4 win over France secured third place at the World Cup – their best finish since lifting the trophy in 1966. But for Rice, the stand-in captain, the achievement is bittersweet. “We are just gutted we lost in that semi-final,” he said. “We’re tired of saying we’re proud of coming in semi-finals and quarter-finals – we want to win with England ultimately.”
“England secure third place at World Cup, best finish since 1966, but semi-final loss to Argentina leaves squad with 'broken hearts'.”
That semi-final defeat came at the hands of Argentina, the old enemy, who came from behind to win 2-1 after Anthony Gordon had put England ahead. Lionel Messi provided two assists to break English hearts once more, adding another chapter to a rivalry that runs deep.
Michael Owen knows that pain better than most. Recalling the 1998 penalty shootout loss to Argentina, Owen described the silence on England’s team bus afterwards – then the party on the Argentina bus. “The music was blasting and, literally, the bus was shaking. Javier Zanetti. Diego Simeone. Gabriel Batistuta. They were banging on the windows and loving every minute of it.”
But Owen also remembered Alan Shearer’s response. “He stopped and pointed to the Argentina bus. He stood there and at the top of his voice told us, ‘Some of you will be lucky enough to play that mob again. Just remember this moment.’”
That moment of retribution did not come this year. England led in the semi-final but could not hold on. Assistant manager Anthony Barry, tears in his eyes during a half-time interview, said: “They’re playing a game with broken hearts. I see 11 lads on the field with broken hearts. I’ve seen them in the hotel the last few days with broken hearts. And they can build a performance like that through pride of playing for England.”
Despite the pain, Rice insisted the gap is closing. “We’re so close, honestly. There’s been so much talk about this group over the last few years going out of tournaments. … I think we need to keep going. I do think it’s close. It’s a game of small margins.”
For now, England have bronze – and a squad that, according to Rice, is the best in a generation. The question, as always, is whether that will ever be enough.