Queen and country
08/06/02 | by Alex Walker

What a great week it has been. Despite Sunday's result, confidence was still pretty high around the country and the jubilee celebrations helped swell national pride going into the Argentina game.

And to cap it off, one of the most competent and mature performances ever by an England side has turned the talk from an early exit from the group of death, to a the possibility of going all the way to the final.

There's a long way to go before that, and it is vital that England don't lose concentration for Wednesday's game, but certainly England are capable. They showed that on Friday with a performance that befitted a cup-winning side. If they play like that in every game, they are capable of beating anyone.

Every man stuck to his role and concentration never dropped. We made defending against one of the best attacking sides in the world look easy, and still gave their defence endless problems on the break.

The inspirational leadership of Beckham; the coolness on the ball from Ferdinand; the hard work by Nicky Butt; the sparks from Paul Scholes: the passionate support from the England supporters: it all adds up to a game that will be remembered for years as one of the great England performances in a World Cup.

The only problem is for the team to find it in themselves to produce more of the same on Wednesday. We know England are capable of rising to compete with the best in the big games. The performance against Germany last year was enough to show that.

But a repeat of the poor showings that followed that momentous win could still see us make an early exit. Sven needs to keep the spirit and the belief, as well as the desire to do well, going not only for the Nigeria game, but for the knock-out stages as well.

If he does that, then it's hard to see us ever losing unless we are very unlucky. We could have had a bagful against the Argies, with Owen hitting the post and Sheringham's screaming volley forcing a great save from the keeper. And while we looked solid and dangerous in the last game, other sides are showing weaknesses.

Brazil have got the same flair and skill that they have always had. But defensively they are flimsy. Deny them the ball, and all the attacking talent they have counts for nothing.

Italy, Portugal and France have all lost and the path is open for England to go all the way.

Of course, one swallow doesn't make a summer. Some have accused the English press of going over the top - declaring us World Champions after just two games.

But it sure makes a nice change from the negative coverage we had to deal with in Euro 2000 (not that it wasn't deserved) and why shouldn't we all go a little crazy after a win like that? The scenes in Nottingham's market square after the game were fantastic - bringing back memories of when Forest won the league.

We've not won the World Cup yet, but the pride of our team and the pride of a nation has been restored.