Qualification Will Go Right Down To The Wire For England
An international break is upon us, where we will see England desperately try to secure a trip to Brazil for next year’s World Cup. The tickets Roy Hodgson’s side are hoping for, however, require them to travel as players rather than mere spectators.
When England failed to qualify for Euro 2008, there was an uncertain feeling for most young fans regarding how they were supposed to react. Most had never seen a major international tournament without the Three Lions involved, with the last time prior to 2008 being the 1994 World Cup held in the USA.
Considering qualification was in England’s own hands at Wembley and a draw would have sufficed, not being able to achieve it made the whole situation much more depressing. Steve McClaren would soon depart as manager of the national team as fans bemoaned the ‘same old England’, who had thrown away any chance of success that summer even more prematurely than normal.
The European Championships is obviously much smaller than the World Cup as the names suggest. In terms of the number of teams competing in each tournament, the Euros is half the size. Therefore, whilst trying to enjoy the summer of 2008 without England or ignore it completely were both options last time the Three Lions missed out, the same can hardly be said for 2014.
A World Cup in football’s spiritual home, not getting to Brazil would be one of the England national team’s biggest regrets. Roy Hodgson has two more matches to steer the side through, where at the moment nothing but consecutive victories would guarantee qualification.
England find themselves as one of four teams vying for first place in a very competitive group. Whilst the Three Lions sit top at present, they have a lot to do over 180 minutes of football if they want to stay there.
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