Prior to the corrosion of England’s ‘Golden Generation’ the build up to any major tournament was routinely accompanied by hyper levels of hype and an optimism that bordered on the delusional. As the first day of reckoning approached the public would whip up a belief that our boys were world beaters, a belief grounded in little more than patriotic longing. The media meanwhile tub-thumped and plastered their back pages with jingoistic headlines that suggested twenty-three pampered and somewhat overrated multi-millionaires were off to war.
Perhaps then the decade of anti-climax that was the summation of having Rooney, Gerrard, Lampard and co in England’s ranks was a blessing of sorts? It levelled our expectations. It was a prolonged and harsh reality check that exposed the Three Lions’ limitations. More so it prompted some much-needed self-analysis.
But then with our hands up and admitting that we’d all got a little bit carried away in recent years further disappointments followed. Against Italy in Euro 2012 an England midfield consisting of James Milner, Scott Parker and Ashley Young was made to look as ordinary as it was. At the last World Cup England exited at the group stage and frankly may as well have not shown up for all the impact they made while two years ago in France an Icelandic side greater than the sum of its parts brutally took an axe to even our readjusted, measured aspirations to reach a quarter-final.
It is only now, with the national side preparing to depart for Russia under the charge of a young, progressive coach that we can see how much damage all of the above did to our collective psyche. Because if a claim can be made that in years gone by England overestimated its standing in world football now we cloak ourselves in pessimism. Where once there were pubs full of painted faces and a touch of arrogance now there is only a deficiency of hope.
It doesn’t take a degree in psychiatry to get the logic here. If we talk ourselves down then the inevitable slap in the face won’t hurt so much. If we repeatedly state that our national side is pretty rubbish then yet another defeat on penalties can be greeted with a know-all shrug and an I-told-you-so.
Yet as understandable as this self-preservation is it is also an enormous shame. Because right now, if you’re brave enough to dare to dream just a little bit, there are a number of reasons for England fans to be very excited about what might occur in Volgograd and beyond next month. At the very least we should be encouraged to drop the doom-and-gloom act and pretence at not being bothered which is fooling precisely no-one.
Concentrating solely on the forward line (and reasons to be cheerful can be found right throughout the squad) Gareth Southgate’s side boasts a front two who have scored 48 goals between them in the Premier League this season and a back-up striker in Jamie Vardy who has notched twenty. You will be hard pushed to find a more prolific trio each in the goal-scoring form of their lives. Spain doesn’t have such fire-power. Neither does Germany or Brazil.
Of the first-choice pairing alluded to Raheem Sterling has been an integral figure for one of the greatest Premier League sides ever created and seen his game transformed to sophisticated brilliance under the tutelage of Pep Guardiola. Harry Kane meanwhile has scored just two fewer goals than Mo Salah and in times past the media would have had a field day trumpeting the fact that England go into a World Cup with a 30 goal striker yet to this point there has barely been a whisper.
Better yet, according to a CIES Football Observatory algorithm that was revealed this week both players are in the top twelve performers across Europe’s top five leagues this season. Factoring in every aspect of their game – from their influence in build-up play to impactful runs made – both Sterling and Kane have out-performed Ronaldo in 2017/18.
For not one second is this a call to arms; an advocating for a return to the daft old days when some loon from the parishes would get a back tattoo of Kane’s face and we’d all be prematurely clamouring for a knighthood when Sir Harry nets twice against Tunisia.
But isn’t it fair to suggest that we’ve all gone too far the other way? We now reside in apathy and by doing so we’re denying ourselves of one of the great joys that come with any major sporting event: that of anticipation; hope, and yes, perchance to dream.
England have causes for optimism this summer. The stats tell us so. Our eyes tell us so. Acknowledging them – even embracing them – does not make you naïve or leave you exposed to an emotional sucker punch. It simply makes you a fan.
