lost that loving feeling - I know that was then, but it could be again

OK, I admit it. I had been planning to write this article all week, banking on England comfortably securing a place in the World Cup finals next year and giving me plenty of positives to talk about. But as you know, things didn’t go quite to plan. I shall come to that later, but for now this is why I still think England can win the World Cup....

Let’s start at the beginning; 1996. Although football had been invented before then, most of it was crap and this was the first time we saw that England were again capable of producing good football and competing with the best after the post-90 slump. This was down to two factors: the right manager at the right time, and a decent set of players reaching their full potential. We saw Gazza at his brilliant best, Shearer on the form of his life, Sheringham making the perfect partner, Adams, Platt, Seaman, Southgate still young enough to produce the goods, and all controlled by a manager as English as tea on the lawn and Union Jack bunting on coronation day.

At the time, this was right. With the home advantage motivation wasn’t a problem and all Venables had to do was stick with a style that, despite the growing foreign presence in the domestic game, was familiar to the players accustomed to the traditional 4-4-2. And if the God’s had been shining on us that night at Wembley then history would have been different.

But history is history and you have to move on. That’s what England did, and come France 98 new manager Glenn Hoddle had the team playing a more continental style featuring rising stars such as Campbell, Beckham and of course Owen. Again, the fates were not smiling our way and the campaign ended in a bitter disappointment, but I personally felt that England had a decent shot at going all the way. The manager was right, and the new players were right.

However, last year’s Euro 2000 tournament showed us what happens when you don’t get it right. Keegan was the wrong man for the job and he had the wrong players. We had resorted back to Euro 96 players such as Adams, Keown, Shearer, and it was no surprise that the few players who retained any credibility from those 3 shameful games were the ones who make up the back-bone of England’s current side.

Fortunately for the national side, the FA took the plunge and appointed a foreign manager to take charge and try and lift spirits from that summer, not to mention the disastrous start to the World Cup campaign. And one year on, super Sven has worked his magic and the results are plain for all to see.

In fact, they speak for themselves: Under Keegan we beat Germany 1-0, then had the score reversed at Wembley - I needn’t remind you of the score-line that Mr Eriksson achieved. And while the Germans are, like ourselves, no longer considered likely contenders to the throne, the sheer turn-around in spirit and performance since Sven-Goran’s appointment 9 months ago is staggering. So much so that we had gone from the resignation that we might have to watch the Cup du Monde 2002 from the sidelines, to a cheerful expectance to qualify automatically prior to the Greece game.

This is an improvement from a side that under Keegan took draws from both champions France and hot-favourites Argentina. The cynics will point out that these were only friendlies so the result does not matter, before going on to mention that Sven’s side recently suffered a home defeat by Holland, but failing to mention that was also a friendly game. Take it which ever way you want, but I think it shows promise.

I also think our team shows promise. From the back, Martyn and Seaman are both solid keepers. In defence, Campbell and Ferdinand’s respective transfer values speak for themselves and Gary Neville still remains first choice right-back for me. Left-back we have struggled with since our very own Psycho hung-up his international boots (time for a re-call?) and although Ashley Cole shows a lot of promise, he still looks vulnerable to me. However, that is merely one down-side and when you consider that our midfield would make any side proud, each player bringing his own individual abilities to the field and making a very balanced source of creativity, you can perhaps over-look this slight gap in the team. With the creative talent England posses behind him, Owen is always going to get goals, as is who-ever plays alongside him, preferably one of his Liverpool team-mates if only to maintain a familiarity between the two forwards.

Familiarity is probably one of the biggest reason why so many people in this country are willing to write off our chances next year. It is always easy to be pessimistic and critical, and when ‘names’ like Zidane, Batistuta, Seedorf, Rivaldo et al come into the equation, it becomes even easier. We often forget just how good our own ‘names’ are, and while Owen and Beckham don’t have the exotic titles, I assure you that they are just as exotic when it comes down to scoring goals.

But perhaps this combination of lack of confidence and appreciation of our abilities will actually benefit the team. If expectations are low, then the players will be working under less pressure, and there might even be a defiance in the side as they attempt to prove the doubters wrong.

Certainly when the pressure has been on, as with the Germany and Greece games, mistakes have been made and prices paid for them. But now we have actually qualified, the team may be more relaxed, settled and focused.

Of course, come a World Cup the pressure is always going to be immense, so the best thing is for everyone to get behind the team in a positive manner. Whether or not getting behind the team in a positive manner will be easier said than done at 4 in the morning will soon be discovered.