Chris Sutton provided some measured and accurate analysis of England’s World Cup exit..
The former Celtic striker covered the competition from Russia up until the the quarter-finals for BBC 5 Live and was able to sample the home-based hype in the lead up to the defeat from Croatia.
Reaching the last four exceeded expectations after qualifying but wins over Tunisia, Panama and Sweden is nothing to go overboard about.
Croatia deserved it????????…England can be proud though! Gareth Southgate and this young team have inspired a generation??PlayStation, XBox, PC should be thrown in the bin and kids across the country will want to be the next Kane and Maguire!!! Well done Gareth and England ????????
— Chris Sutton (@chris_sutton73) July 11, 2018
.@chris_sutton73: This England team has inspired us all, captured our imaginations including my daughter’s and that’s better than anything https://t.co/Vg6ovLHzR8 #WorldCup
— MailOnline Sport (@MailSport) July 11, 2018
Once the squad return home Gareth Southgate will have the difficult task of trying to manage expectations that England just need to take the next step, rational thought would suggest that at best England are just about in the top eight nations in Europe.
Southgate took over from Sam Allardyce early in the qualification process and managed to put out a competent, organised team that capitalised on set pieces, they offered little else with no players outside the squad having a strong claim for inclusion.
With the World Cup ending on Sunday the focus will turn quickly to domestic matters, supplemented no doubt by the opinions of Sutton.
