Bukayo Saka is not pretending the summer is behind him. Asked this week about the World Cup semi-final in which England led Argentina before conceding twice late on, the Arsenal winger used the word "scar" three times in the space of a short answer, and it did not sound like a figure of speech he had prepared.
"Obviously, there is still a scar on us when you believed and everyone was so united and so confident we could do it," he said. "Not just us, but the whole country we felt. You try to move on as soon as possible, but you know a scar is a scar, it decides to heal when it heals itself."
How close it was
Thomas Tuchel's side were within minutes of becoming the first England men's team to reach a World Cup final since 1966. Two late Argentina goals turned a 1-0 lead into a 2-1 defeat, and the bronze-medal match that followed, a 6-4 win over France, gave England their best finish at a World Cup in six decades and did nothing whatsoever to make anybody feel better about it. Third place is a fact. The final was the point.
Saka started three of England's eight matches at the tournament, which tells its own story about the depth Tuchel had to choose from and about where Saka sat in the pecking order by the end of it. He is not dwelling on that publicly. He is dwelling, quite openly, on the semi-final.
Spain at Wembley on Saturday
The remedy, or the reminder, arrives quickly. England host Spain, the world champions, at Wembley on Saturday at 19:45 BST in the first of four Nations League fixtures across the next fortnight. Saka's line on that was more familiar: draw a line under the World Cup, focus on the new international season, get through "four massive, difficult group games" and qualify for the knockouts. Whether the Wembley crowd will manage to draw the same line is another matter. Spain in the first match back is about as direct a test of the mood as the schedule could have offered.
Dowman question
Saka was also asked about his Arsenal team-mate Max Dowman, who is 16 and already being talked about as a senior England player. "His talent is insane," Saka said. "It's up to him how far he is going to go in football. His talent is crazy." He thinks a call-up is a matter of time.
Lee Carsley, the Under-21 manager, agrees about the talent and disagrees about the timing. Dowman is with the Under-19s during this window, and Carsley thinks that is right for now. "He is more than capable of playing in the under-21s," he said, before explaining that the younger age group lets Dowman play full minutes, take a little pressure off, and play with his friends again. He wants a conversation with the player and his parents about the pathway. "I have no doubt that Max is going to be with the under-21s," he added. Not yet, though.
Context: England lost the 2026 World Cup semi-final 2-1 to Argentina after two late goals, then beat France 6-4 in the third-place match, their best World Cup finish since 1966. Saka started three of England's eight games. Next: England v Spain, Nations League, Wembley, Saturday 26 September, 19:45 BST, the first of four group games in two weeks. Max Dowman, 16, Arsenal, is with England Under-19s this window.
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