England skipper Harry Kane admitted Euro 2024 final defeat by Spain was “as tough as it gets” after Mikel Oyarzabal grabbed a late winner in Berlin.
Oyarzabal came off the bench to fire the Spaniards to a 2-1 victory after fellow substitute Cole Palmer had cancelled out Nico Williams’ opener to extend England’s 58-year wait for a major trophy.
Asked for his reaction after the final whistle, Kane told BBC One: “Losing in a final is as tough as it gets. We did really well to get back into the game and get it back to 1-1, and then we couldn’t quite use that momentum to push on.
“We couldn’t quite keep the ball and we got punished for it towards the end of the game, so it’s as painful as it could be in a football match.”
Asked why England had not been able to build upon Palmer’s leveller, Kane added: “I don’t know. We didn’t quite manage the same intensity and pressure, I guess, we didn’t quite keep the ball well enough.
“It’s the last stage of the tournament, there’s a lot of tired legs, there’s a lot of tired mentality there and we just struggled. Then obviously we got caught with the ball in behind.
“These [games] are down to big moments, we had a big moment at the end there where they cleared one off the line and it could have been different, but for now it’s just really disappointing.”
It has proved a testing tournament for Gareth Southgate’s men, who have struggled for consistency, and Kane’s form in particular has been a topic for debate.
He said: “It’s been a tough tournament. We’ve had to show a lot of resilience, me personally and the whole team as well. It’s been a difficult ride.
“We’ve done extremely well to get here, but ultimately were going to be judged on this game. We wanted to do it so badly for ourselves, but also for the fans and everyone who has believed in us the whole way, so right now it’s just huge disappointment.”
Southgate himself came in for concerted criticism earlier in the tournament and there is a school of thought which suggests that he will now call time on his reign as national team boss.
Asked if the players wanted the former defender to stay, Kane said: “We’ve made it clear we love the manager, but that’s his decision. This is not the time to talk about that now.
“That’s down to him. He’ll go away and think about it. Right now we’re all just hurting.”
For 22-year-old Chelsea star Palmer, the pain of defeat will provide motivation for the World Cup campaign which lies head.
He told ITV1: “The World Cup is in two years’ time and we need to remember this feeling and hopefully push on and try to win.
“Spain have been brilliant all tournament, everyone has seen what they can do. They’re a great team and congratulations to them.
“We got to another final, there’s positives to take, but everyone wanted to go one step further and we’re disappointed that we didn’t.”
However for former Manchester City team-mate Rodri, the emotions were strikingly different.
The Spain midfielder told ITV1: “It’s unbelievable. This is a dream. Now we are the best national team in the Euros. It’s crazy. But this talks about the humility that we have had all these years to keep working, never lose faith.
“And this tournament, come on – we beat four World Cup champions I mean, how tough was it? It’s unbelievable, so I think they deserve everything.”
Asked if he had feared the worst when Palmer levelled, Rodri added: “I know this guy, he’s going to be a huge talent in the next years. He put it in the corner and in that moment, we suffered a little bit.
“But this tournament, we have shown some different that is key and we overcame this situation, so it was great.”