England Fall Short With A Match To Spare

 As it turns out, Greg Dyke's cut-throat gesture was accurate all along. The England chairman's worst fears in terms if results were realised, as successive 2-1 defeats to Italy and Uruguay put paid to hopes of his troops finally punching above their weight. Here is Queen's University Belfast Student's Union's reaction. Not everyone was supporting England, I can tell you that!

Let's be honest, I don't think anyone really expected anything different. Putting money on victories in either match would have been throwing your money away, but England in major competitions always elicit the most irrational of feelings and predictions. Draws to Ecuador and Honduras (who themselves both put on quite a decent show last night) should have raised alarms that this was a team on a hiding to nothing.

Pride can still be salvaged. Victory against Costa Rica would be welcome, in a 'doing what Italy and Uruguay failed to do' sort of way. It will also give Roy Hodgson an excuse to drop the likes of Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney, to truly throw off the shackles of an expectant nation, and experiment ahead of the qualification process for Euro 2016. Treating it as an extra friendly would be a bonus, seeing as England managers never have a great deal of time with their players. Wallowing in self-pity should be kept to a minimum - the work starts here for two years down the line.

As it happens, there is really no need for the usual cat-calls and 'root-and-branch reviews' that have dogged previous England sides in the past decade. Aside from the occasional ropey sub, I think it is fair to say Hodgson did all he could. It isn't his fault John Terry's antics have rendered him un-selectable and in early retirement. Michael Carrick and Ashley Cole however, are possibly players he might have used, and would not have taken the place of any up-and-coming youngsters. In hindsight, Gerrard and Baines would have been the ones to make way. We may yet see the retirement of Gerrard in the coming days.

Rooney came in for more than his fair share of criticism over these opening two games, yet he provided the assist for one goal, and scored the other. He was arguably the best player against Uruguay - deployed in a more central role. His vast experience is vital to England's attack, amidst all the furore over Raheem Sterling and Ross Barkley. A fluid interchangable forward line is emerging, and even Ricky Lambert may have a role to play in the coming years - his intelligence and thunderous finishing ability was criminally under-used.

The most pressing concern remains the defence. Hodgson, and whoever succeeds him, will be praying that Phil Jones starts to emerge as the power-house defender everyone prematurely wet themselves over in excitment on joining Manchester United. Jack Rodwell also needs to re-discover his mojo, and a place in someone's starting eleven. Both those players could yet be a key part of England's future, along with Luke Shaw, and whoever eventually takes the place of Glen Johnson.

The effort was there, but like most England appearances at major tournaments, the organisation was not. Hodgson will probably be given a stay of execution, but a victory against Costa Rica is a must if he wants to inspire hope that there are better days ahead.

England's latest D-Day.

With real football taking a back seat to the endless home nation hand-wringing that is an international break, Roy Hodgson as I write is attempting to avoid joining the ranks of Graham Taylor and Steve McClaren, two former England managers who fancied their respective summers putting their feet up.

Another 4-1 win against the Poles will no doubt prompt a media frenzy, and awake previously sleeping expectations of a successful World Cup campaign in Rio. What was once an uninspired bunch of plodders being led by a soporific old gent will become a tight-knit bunch of sweat-bleeding lion-taming warriors being led to war by the calming voice of experience. That's certainly how it worked in the Sven era anyway - yet a series of wake-up calls on the field and the much maligned world rankings have given the country a sense of humility, and most importantly perspective.

Certainly, England would not swap with any of their fellow home nations right now - Scotland hoping to avoid finishing bottom of their group with a first home win of the campaign; Wales losing twice as many as they have won, despite the world-class talents of Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey, and the enigmatic managerial genius of Chris Coleman; and Northern Ireland passing themselves off the park with a string of powderpuff displays.

Things are comparitively rosy in the English country garden, and they presumably always will be with the obvious advantage in having a money-drenched top division. Despite being doomed to toil in the constant shadows of rank outsiderhood, what is the genuine chance of a team to match the technical prowess of the Spanish, German, French, Dutch, Portugese... and then there's the Africans and the small matter of South 'Messi' America.

Without turning into the English cricket team in terms of 'imported' talent, movement and technique will remain generations away, and it's best to love our national sides for what they are, not what they could be.

Clash Of The International Titans

So England got the job done - although it would have been an alarming first 35 minutes until Wayne Rooney opened the scoring from the penalty spot. It has been well reported that the 5-0 defeat was actually better than the average margin of defeat that San Marino have experienced. The tiny nation's record defeat was 13-0, at home to Germany in 2006.

What usually happens in circumstances like this is a combination of massive overconfidence on the part of the favourites and a raising of the minnows' game. Well here's a look at the stats - 86% possession for England. In a year's time, when Roy Hodgson is probably on the ropes for one reason or another, the possession stats will of course be wheeled out in an attempt to prove that at least England's ball retention has improved since that 0-0 hammering dished out by Italy. The fact that San Marino were part of the itinerary will be gleefully brushed under the carpet.

A problem I have found during this international period is that people seem to question the fact that fixtures like this should even take place. I may myself be somewhat dismissive in the above paragraph - but if people are so adamant that the likes of San Marino shouldn't be taking part in international tournaments like this, then why not apply the same logic to the Premier League? This blog has previously railed against a closed Premier League (ie. no relegation) and one way to ensure San Marino never improve is to bar them from playing better opposition. I don't see how that could benefit anyone.

The same could have been said to apply to Wales in recent years. Obviously Wales have always been a couple of tiers above international football's true cannon fodder, but had their good form under Gary Speed (RIP) come at a better time they may themselves have been competing at Euro 2012. Who'd have thought that?

San Marino may only have a population of 30,000, the smallest of any UEFA country, but to get rid of them from the international arena would be heartless. Not everyone can be Spain.

Stuff for you to Read. Maybe some football Stuff.

So into the deep end at Euro 2012 we go. Not a goal-less game to speak of, despite the vain attempts of Giovanni Trapattoni’s Ireland (I get the feeling three 0-0s would’ve suited him just grand). Greece have provided the shock of the tournament so far. Now where and when did we hear that before? Any hopes of a reprisal will surely come to nothing against a far superior Germany side. The Germans will be well aware of the potential for upset, given the Euro 2004 miracle. There will be absolutely no complacency I can assure you of that.

On a similar note, Roy Hodgson will be ensuring there will be no slouching and patting on the back going on in the England camp. His side have done pretty well so far, although I don’t buy into this myth that England have over-achieved to get this far. The side is ranked sixth in the world, and is the fourth highest ranked European team. By that logic, the semi-finals are about par. The England football team is either amazing or awful it seems. Realistically, with sensible management and an ability to shut out the media’s over-expectant nature, they can compete with the best in the world. They cannot expect to win tournaments. But with a bit of luck it is possible.

The Italians will be no easy pickings. Time and time again, they have ground their way to the latter stages of tournaments. The 2006 World Cup victory is proof of that. Andrea Pirlo will be drawing on all his experience to drag this comparatively limited Italy side that one step closer to glory. My money will be on a penalty shoot-out, before England’s legendary generous nature kicks in and they end up flying themselves home. I would love to see Balotelli slot home the winning penalty. He will turn from the darling of the English press to an assassin overnight.

In other news, I’m starting to miss the Premier League. It’s startlingly not long to go!