New footage has surfaced which appears to explain why Jude Bellingham lost his temper with Valentin Barco and slapped the defender following England’s crushing World Cup semi-final defeat to Argentina.
England put one foot in this summer’s final as Anthony Gordon directed home Morgan Rogers’ cross to break the deadlock ten minutes into the second half in Atlanta.
But the Three Lions adopted an ultra-defensive approach in an attempt to shut out the game after their breakthrough, with Thomas Tuchel sending on Dan Burn, Ezri Konsa and Nico O’Reilly as Argentina pursued an equaliser.
Tuchel’s negative tactics were duly punished as Enzo Fernandez made it all square with an emphatic 25-yard strike beyond Jordan Pickford in the 85th minute, sending Argentina’s support into raptures.
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And with extra-time looming, second-half substitute Lautaro Martinez headed home Lionel Messi’s pinpoint cross from the right flank to put Argentina in front for the first time in the contest.
Lionel Scaloni’s men held firm for the remaining minutes to come away from Mercedes-Benz Stadium with a famous 2-1 victory, setting up a mouthwatering showdown with Spain in Sunday’s final.
England, meanwhile, will lock horns France in the third-place playoff on Saturday.
Wednesday’s encounter was a bad-tempered affair throughout and the ill feeling between the two teams extended beyond the 90 minutes as an irate Bellingham was seen slapping unused substitute Barco during a post-match fracas.
It was initially unclear what had led Bellingham to react with such ferocity, but a separate video has emerged on social media which may go some way to explaining why the midfielder lashed out.
The 11-second clip shows Strasbourg’s Barco racing onto the field and cheering in the faces of several England stars in the immediate aftermath of Fernandez’s late equaliser – while the majority of Argentina’s players are busy celebrating by the corner flag.
Bellingham can be seen shoving the diminutive defender away with some force on the edge of the England penalty area and just moments later, the defending champions scored their second to further demoralise a down-and-out England.
To make matters even worse for Bellingham, Tottenham’s Cristian Romero also took the opportunity to rub salt in the wound after the game, with the centre-back pictured staring directly at the Real Madrid star while cheering and thumping his chest.
‘There was blood in the water, and we went for it. That’s the feeling that I was getting,’ Argentina head coach Scaloni told reporters shortly after his side’s win.
‘You just have to keep going. We hit the crossbar. We hit the post, and it just couldn’t go in.
‘There’s six or seven chances, but I’m very pleased about that, because the team fought to the very end, and I think this is critical.’
Asked how he would describe the performance, Scaloni offered: ‘Epic squared?
‘This group is difficult to explain. It is a show of the collectiveness, the brotherhood that we are in.
We fight to the very end with all that we have.’
Tuchel has faced heavy criticism from fans and pundits alike for the ultra-defensive approach England adopted after taking the lead, but the German insisted he had ‘no regrets’ about his tactical switch in the aftermath.
But despite widespread calls for Tuchel to lose his job, the FA are reportedly planning to keep faith with the former Chelsea, PSG and Bayern Munich boss.
Tuchel put pen to paper on a two-year extension with the Three Lions in February, with his contract running through to Euro 2028.
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