And so it came to pass...

Sunday June 27 and the characters in the media were mostly all talking up England’s chances against Germany. The day after, there is national alarm and a collective looking back over the shoulder and down the years. To try to understand the scale of the problem and where it started to go wrong, the channels are awash questioning who should take responsibility. Is it cultural, psychological or technical? Let's look at each in turn.

First, on a cultural level, some commentators were complaining about the quality of the football in the early group games, citing teams like New Zealand who should not be at the tournament. This argument was also lined up about the vuvuzela. 'Why should we, the powerful western Europeans, be subjected to that awful din?', some said. In the spirit of Nelson Mandela, don’t you think that we should celebrate diversity? It is good for social inclusion on a global scale that so called lesser teams and curious instruments should flourish. It enriches us all by participating in an event that expands our understanding. I think England should also think about the national team’s record at major championships. In order to rediscover our joy and wonder of football, should we reset the expectation and consider that it is be better to participate with a smile than worry about winning the whole thing and what happens if we don't?

Secondly, England clearly have some talented players and their performances to date suggests that they and the manager have choked, somewhat. How to get over this? Think about this: my wife and her colleagues were outraged a few years ago when their new line manager was drafted in on a stratospheric salary. Everyone in the team reacted badly initially and disquiet grew when this the new boss was not performing. Whilst this boss was out within twelve months the damage was done because of the effect on the organisation and their people. On a similar theme, by day two of Wimbledon every British player except Andy Murray was out and the print media served a few smashes at the Lawn Tennis Association the next day. Respected tennis figures were asked to give an opinion on why no players are progressing and the overriding theme was one of privilege reducing desire. Psychologically, you have to wonder how this weight of expectation skews preparation in the minds of the England players when they are coming up against players and teams who get paid much less and yet seem to compete at the same level, or higher?

This leads on to the technical abilities of individuals, teams and nations. It's a pleasure for many to watch the Latin American teams and marvel at their technique. But I bet their kids don't play full size games on a good surface from an early age. In fact, they'd be lucky if they play with any kind of proper football, I would imagine. Their counterparts on these shores are being sculpted from the September to January babies who are physically dominant and can impose their will on the weaker, younger, but perhaps more skilful year group cohorts. To move forward, we need small sided games and get everyone to participate and treasure how they hold, pass and dribble the ball. I firmly believe that 5 A-side football should be promoted above all other forms until young players are fourteen years old. Adults play more 5 A-side now. It is a hugely enjoyable platform for football and promotes the short game and intricate passing and dribbling. The infrastructure is there and can be expanded to fulfil the needs of a new, fresh coaching approach.
Can anyone remember the second half performance against Egypt in the March friendly at Wembley? I thought the midfield balance came from Carrick's careful distribution. Consider the Algeria game when Heskey picked up the ball in the right channel and embarked on his dribble. I am sure Emile is a great guy, but his attempted stepover, where he trod on the ball, lost his balance and fell over epitomised the whole campaign – embarrassing. Emile looked lost and almost acknowledging that he was out of his depth when he looked up and it's a shame because he played so well in the first game against the USA. That, too, however, is ironic considering his brief was to bring Rooney into play and Rooney was awful, throughout, for reasons yet to be revealed. Look at performances. Do you think England needs a different approach?

Should we question the coach? Every single football fan has a view on his tactics today, but he was not there to teach the players how to control and pass the ball. It can't stop us all speculating how we might have handled the hot seat, though. For my ten deutchsmarks worth, I wondered about changing the balance by leaving out Lampard and Defoe. This would enable Carrick to play in the middle alongside Barry with Gerrard in between them and Rooney. From here, Gerrard could tuck in when defending and break out to help Rooney create in zone 14 (i.e. in front of the opposition's penalty box). With Joe Cole wide left and Milner wide right we would have had a better chance of controlling possession in midfield and dictating play. Pace would have come down the flanks by Johnson and Ashley Cole steaming ahead and having the wide midfield players cover for the full backs when they bombed on to join in the attack. 4 4 2 or 4 5 1 or 4 1 4 1 is a red herring. However England play, they need to learn to control the midfield and have a starting 11 who are capable of retaining possession and building confidence through each performance. Beckenbauer said it was kick and rush and how he must have embraced Miroslav Klose after the first goal and be having a good laugh today. His stinging comments after the game hurt so much because the truth can hurt so much. England fans, though, should consider our UK partners and be thankful for the chance to participate at all. We need to reconsider and build a system that will help all UK teams to participate at major tournament finals.

So, where do we go from here? There is a question around transparency and conflict of interest between the FA and the Premier League that needs someone to face into. But, will those on the penalty spot shoot, or pass?