Croatia reached the World Cup final for the first time in its history yesterday, sparking scenes of joy in Moscow and in Zagreb after Mario Mandzukic’s extra-time winner prolonged England’s decades of pain to set up a decider against France.
“We’re gutted,” said England captain Harry Kane, still on course to finish as the tournament’s top goalscorer with six strikes in Russia.
“It hurts, it hurts a lot. It’s going to hurt for a while of course. We can hold our heads up high. It’s been a fantastic journey. We got further than anyone else could thought we would have,” added Kane after the tense semi-final match at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow.