England Out With A Whimper.

Don't get me wrong, all in all it was a good World Cup for England. No one expected England to do as well as they did, and we should be happy. However, the last two games of the tournament left a bitter taste in the mouth. Yes England took on Belgium with 24 hours less preparation time than their opponents, but did that really make a difference?

Southgate Proud As England Bow Out Of Russia

Of course, there is still the third place game to come. A meeting between group stage rivals, Belgium to see if this England side can still be the most successful England side on foreign soil. In 1990 England reached the World Cup Semi Final before being defeated by West Germany. The following game was also a loss, with England finishing fourth behind the hosts in Italia '90.

Analysis of the tournament as a whole for England will follow tomorrow. For now though I want to focus on last nights defeat to Croatia. Despite the defeat I finished watching the game with positive thoughts. Not so much that we had blown a golden chance but more that we had given some young players potentially valuable experience.

Three Lions Roar Into The Semi Finals

I must admit that I was working at the time of the game. Following via score updates never gives quite the same emotion as watching the ebb and flow of a match. Their attempts on our goal, and our efforts missed are not lived through with the rather boring display of 'ten minutes gone, 0-0'.

England On Fire In The Heat Of Nizhny Novgorod

Okay, so it wasn't ever going to be anything else than an England win, right? Panama, the Central American country with a population of 4 million, at their first World Cup against the founders of the game? If this World Cup has taught us anything so far, and England's own recent history, it's to expect the unexpected.