FEATURE: Why haven’t England had more success at the World Cup recently?

The EPL is often regarded as the finest league in the world, due to the competition, quality of players, and style of play. Despite this, the England national team has failed to perform or impress at any of the last few major competitions. Rivals Germany, Spain, and France, all of whom have equally talented domestic leagues, have experienced success. Why is this?

Despite winning the cup back in 1966, England have tripped up during key moments, costing them games in recent time. Being as consistent a qualifier as they are, more should be expected of a team with quality players such as Harry Kane. The issue seemingly is that the EPL is so popular and such a critical money maker, many domestic players struggle to compete with similar talent from abroad who are electing to choose the EPL as the league from which they want to emerge. Moreover, the academies at EPL teams, whilst outstanding, seem to churn out fewer players that reach stardom compared with the likes of Barcelona or Schalke. By no fault of anyone, the EPL is a league that everyone wants to play in, and this is something that executives should hold on to. But the national team will continue to struggle unless more players get playing time at a higher level of club. For example, West Ham academy graduate Reece Oxford has elected to take his talents to Germany in an attempt to try and improve his gameplay and grow into a better player, perhaps with a shot at making the national team some day. Another example would be Christian Pulisic from the US, who like Oxford left his home country to try and get game time in order to grow. Look where he has reached already. Decisions like these are huge and honestly quite terrifying, especially for players so young, but sometimes they have to be made for the greater good of a career. 

Recently, England teams have made several mistakes at critical moments that have lost them games. Surprising, as many on the roster are extremely experienced individuals. This too, is something that I believe to have cost England international success. Rarely have the announced rosters for a tournament been well balanced between experience and youth, nor have they made any opposing team truly fearful. England have not had a player that could test a defense time after time since perhaps David Beckham. Could this year be an opportunity for an England team, that will presumably feature players like Raheem Sterling and Deli Alli who have had much success in club play this season? 

The Tottenham midfielder is one of a host of players, particularly on the England national team, that must sort out their attitudes if they want to achieve international success. Deli Alli is perhaps becoming one of the world’s greatest playmakers. He has a long way to go, but there is certainly potential there. But with power comes great responsibility. This season Alli has shown the world glimpses of raw talent, but also examples of juvenile delinquency. 

So it is very simple for Deli Alli and others who sometimes act up during domestic club games. Play simple, smart soccer, and acknowledge that things will not always go your way. Referees will make mistakes, passes will be misplaced, the crowd will boo. That is the trademark of the beautiful game. Perform how everyone knows you can, and play with humility and respect, and you will have a successful tournament. Failure to act like a man will result in the world laughing at you. 

To achieve success in Russia, Coach Southgate will need to balance his team between youth and ambition, along with experience. He has a sizable pool from which to grab talent, however many players are very inexperienced at the national level. Moreover, Southgate will need to decide on a formation that he believes will gain England success against his group opponents. Will he elect to play three at the back like many nations have started to, or will he choose a classic England 4-5-1 formation. Only time will tell.

One thing though, is set in stone. England teams have lacked desire recently. And if the team selected by Southgate does not treat each game uniquely, and if they fail to work hard as a unit both offensively, and defensively, they will not achieve success. Period. There are too many other teams of similar talent levels to England, and too many teams who have proven that they can throw punches and get results against the big boys, for England to go into any game half heartedly. The group stage is too short to wake up half way through. It is simple for England, just like it is for their star man Alli. Perform like everyone knows you should, and you will have the opportunities to leave Russia with silverware. If you don’t, then don’t be surprised if you are left hanging out to dry by any one of the other 31 teams in attendance.