SOCCER: England tried to hold on but it wasn't enough, says Kane

 ATLANTA — England went ahead in the 55th minute through Anthony Gordon, but Argentina responded with an equalizer from Enzo Fernandez before Lautaro Martinez scored the winning goal in stoppage time to send the South Americans into the final.

"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," Kane told the BBC.

"At this level, it's not enough, so just gutted because we've worked so hard to be here and the lads have given every last bit of running, sweat, blood, tears, whatever it is."

Kane said England struggled to cope with Argentina's relentless attacking pressure after taking the lead.

"After the goal, whether it was them putting more men forward or us just not being able to match them man for man, it just was wave after wave and we were trying to hold on as we were putting blocks in.

"But in the end, it wasn't enough."

The defeat means England's wait for a second World Cup title continues. The team has not reached a World Cup final since winning the tournament in 1966.

Kane said the team's approach after scoring was to continue attacking, but Argentina's comeback shifted the momentum.

"The boys are always ready for any moment in the game. When we went ahead, the messaging was to go again and get another goal," he said.

"Then obviously once they scored their two goals, it was to try and find something, but we couldn't quite get the momentum back in the game."

Despite the heartbreaking loss, Kane highlighted England's strong tournament campaign and said the team remains close to breaking through on the world stage.

"We had a lot of good moments in this tournament. 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 in the final stage of the tournament."

"Just gutted for the boys, gutted for everyone, the team, the staff, the fans." -Reporting by Trevor Stynes, editing by Ed Osmond/Reuters