bwin Sportsblog - Football - Will England ever deliver?

After watching the stale performance from England yesterday where they struggled to even draw with Switzerland then I simply cannot make a case for them doing anything in the 2012 European Championships in Poland and the Ukraine. I think that the English football fans need to accept that our league, philosophy and the way that we play is simply not cut out for success at international football. It is clear that our top clubs are more concerned with Champions League football and the money that is attached with doing well in that competition. Couple that with the financial incentives that are there for teams that do well in the Premier League and having players away on international duty and possibly risking injury is nothing more than a pain for these teams! I also think that although the players would never admit it, international football gets in the way of their own personal schedules as well. There are simply too many important high profile games in the English season for competitions like the FA Cup and international football to be of any importance. I think that this shows through in the performances and yesterday’s performance was limp to say the least. England have top quality players but they have simply not produced now for a long time and not since Euro 1996 has England came close to winning a tournament. The list since then is painful reading……France 98 (2nd round)……Euro 2000 (group stages)…..Japan/South Korea 2002 (quarter finals)….Euro 2004 (quarter finals)…..Germany 2006 (quarter finals)…….Euro 2008 (didn’t qualify)…..South Africa 2010 (2nd round). That speaks volumes……a decent side but not good enough to go all the way.