Why the surprise at England's poor form? Surely a nation that counts Peter Crouch as their most potent weapon in front of goal can hardly be considered amongst the world's best? Why is it that when England beat the Andorras and Faroe Islands of this world (don't even get me started as to why these "teams" go directly into the main qualification round) by eight goals the players are hailed as the best things since 196... okay sliced bread? The 606 phone-in show is jam packed with fans claiming "Gerrard is world class", "Becks (who?) had a blinder", "Terry was a colossus".

And yet it is these same fans that call back ranting when the Three Lions are brought back down to earth with a tame goalless draw at home nonetheless. "Gerrard was shocking", "Me grandma could head the ball better than Crouch", "Terry is a poor man's Nesta", "Was Lampard even playing?"

While both sets of reactions make some valid arguments, the truth lies somewhere in between. England are good but not world class. Definitely not in the top 10 footballing countries based on recent form going back 5 years. The players huff and puff (a technique that works wonders in the Premiership) but continuously fail to produce any end result. When Sven Goran Eriksson took over the reigns 6 years ago he was blessed with "the best group of young players England had ever seen". An experienced core of Campbell, Neville, Beckham and Scholes added to the younger Gerrard, Owen, Ashley Cole and Heskey left everyone dreaming of either a World Cup or European Championship by 2006.

However due to a combination of naive inflexible tactics and undeserved favoritism Eriksson's reign is better remembered for the amount of times he scored in the bedroom than his team did on the pitch. Fundamental questions were never addressed: Where do you play Steven Gerrard? Should Beckham be dropped until he regains his form? Is there no decent left sided midfielder in England? Can Owen truly lead the line?

Had Eriksson made the decision early on to play Gerrard through the middle, relegate David Beckham to the bench when he didn't perform, employ attacking tactics that would suit not just Michael Owen but his strike partner, by now the England team would have been more of a cohesive unit understanding exactly what was expected of them.

In contrast when England plays you get the impression of players desperate to believe their own press, but easily deflated at the realization of their mediocrity after a bad result. The good news is that despite the lack of world class talent available to them, England will forever be the most passionate footballing nation in the world. The challenge that Steve McLaren now faces is finding that fine balance allowing his team to maintain that defensive solidity but giving more freedom to express themselves.

Players like Gerrard, Wayne Rooney and Joe Cole should more often than not be told to go out and enjoy themselves, leaving the likes of Owen Hargreaves, Peter Crouch or Dean Ashton and John Terry to play the calming influences. This English generation of players still has one more chance to fulfill it's initial potential, but only time will tell whether John Terry will be lifting the European Championship two years from now. Their first job is getting there, and what a job that is looking to be...

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