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take a break at the baltic sea, it's pretty nice and the weather should stay fine....

"It's more than 36 hours now since England went out of this World Cup and Fletch and I are still struggling to process that information and summon up the required strength to move on."
Not only you two but millions of supporters of Argentina, England and Brazil have the same sad condition. I have a proposal for FIFA and I will be happy if you write about it in ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Blog.
FIFA should arrange
positions. Thus, we could still
enjoy the world cup.

Why not pop back over to England and join the millions of other bad losers over here pouring out their bile in print and on radio as they try to blame it all on Ronaldo. It's a sickening spectacle.

I would also recommend the baltic sea (Mecklenburg)! During a summer like this it's fantastic, you will enjoy it. There are some beautiful beaches, and maybe you can spot SGE on a ferry shiping home ...

If you are on your way north, you can spend some time in my hometown Münster (80 km north of Dortmund at the A1). Nice City, some british soldiers there.

a sickening spectacle? the only sickening spectacle i saw was the way ronaldo winked at scolari as soon as he got rooney sent off, for his sake i hope rooney breaks his legs when they go back to pre-season training because thats what he deserves. but don't put all the blame on ronaldo by any means, we are still incredibly inept at taking penalties so 10% can be blamed on that. as a nation we have grown accustomed to hyping up england to the point that anything less than a world cup in our cabinet sounds horrifying, the more we big ourselves up the harder we hit the ground wen reality comes knocking. but still ronaldo needs a damn good kicking

I want to dedicate a song to Sven, (who again has said that he made the right choice on the squad, Walcott over Defoe and only 4 strikers, 2 unfit)
Dire Straits ‘Money for Nothing’ (and your chicks for free)
Still got to say that I can’t understand why any top club would want him as their manager??????????????????????

I dont think it would be a betrayal.

It depends how good the geramns have treated you when you were cheering on for england.

Out of the 4 left now, germans are the ones who have won the support( I know you are not gonna support the french ! Are you?)

One small positive thing to come out of this world cup is the improved behaviour of the English fans who travelled to Germany in their thousands.

Yes, I know there were a few ugly scenes and arrests etc but the number of fans actually charged with a proper offence is very small..and overall atmosphere seemed less tense than at other tournaments.

For sure we all drink too much and get a bit boisterous but we are not going to turn into wine-sipping mediterraneans overnight.

Credit must also go to the German police and authorities for the common sense way in which they have handled "invasion" of so many English fans and made everyone feel so welcome.

Although exit to Portugal was disappointing, the level of support from the English fans inside the stadium was fantastic and demonstrated passion for football that exists in this country.

p.s. well done to Germany for hosting tournament so well and for the good football played by German team.Now that England are out I would like Germany to win.

I have a proposal: once England are out of the World Cup, the tournament should be cancelled, and no-one should be allowed to talk about it for four years.

There is something bizzare about tournament football. A lucky nation, with perhaps some tens of millions of people experience victory, but many times more the number will experience defeat, trauma, sometimes anger, loss, emptiness.

For club football, the next game and rehabilitation is never far away. World cup losers board the next plane home and the wait for the next one is 4 years!

Can tournament football be organised in a way that is less traumatic for the losers? Maybe some friendly games between losing teams while the main event goes on. It will provide entertainment and carnival. More importantly, it allows fans and teams to have closure. Say goodbye in a dignified manner rather than in tears.

Can someone please consider this?

Get a grip u English! You're such sore losers! Its only a game, come on guyz!

I'm just really disappointed. This World Cup had opened up for us in a big way and it was the best chance we've had to win since 1970.

Another missed opportunity. If only we'd taken Defoe but regardless, Owen Hargreaves was magnificent and I'm glad he's shut the boo boys up, 90% of whom had never seen him play. If anyone loses a place in the midfield now, it has to be between Lampard and Beckham.

Chins up eh, we lost well. Here's to Euro 2008 and South Afica 2010!!

It is incredible that how many fans and media in England are angry with Ronaldo beacuse he plays for Man U. It is as if his loyalty shoould be with England???. Wake up England! He was playing for Man U for money and he was playing for Portugal with national pride. Be angry with your team as they didnot perform to the hype!!

Taken from this very blog: "I hope Rooney breaks his legs..."; "Ronaldo needs a damn good kicking."

Lovely to see that kind of dignity in defeat.

Sorry, but the 3rd place play-off is enough evidence to prove the futility of more games for losers.

Did watching England play Italy in 1990 give you some "closure" ... whatever "closure" actually means. The heartache was just the same in 1990 as it is in 2006. Seeing the players trot out again for a meaningless game is not the answer. Winning the tournament is.

We lost. We're out. The players should be allowed a holiday.

it hurts so much because the time to redeam comes after 4 years and thats why the win and jubillation is so valuable.

but I would say, 3 days of mourning should be enough!

so at about 2000 on teusday, it should stop and the british should join the germans in support!

hopefully this time around the fans wont be dissappointed.

Tex - I take your point but look at the post above yours (14)...

"Ross wrote:
HAHAHAHAHA
Ronaldo is a legend
Ricardo is my hero.
I love nothing more than watching you boys getting knocked out.....again!
The fact that you thought you hada chance of winning is frankly laughable. Rooney is a thug. If he wasnt a footballer, he would be a car thief.
Bye Bye England"

It swings both ways.

I can be upset with Ronaldo as well as diappointed with the performance of the team. It's not an either or situation.

I'll watch the last few games and look forward to 2008 and 2010.

We do have a good team but will it all work out next time ?

It will work out if we play our best team and if we only use mature players who will not let their hot tempered petulance throw away the opportunity again and again and again

I've read everywhere that we shouldn't blame Rooney but for me this is not the right attitude to take. If somebody cannot be blamed for their own stupid actions then who should be blamed ?? I know - let's blame the manager for selecting him shall we....

I feel sorry for the rest of the team and all the England coaches and fans and I have a very simple suggestion. Let's build for the future and let's start by making it clear that nobody will get into the England team unless they have demonstrated their maturity and their selfless dedication to the cause. We should not play Rooney in the England team until he can show that he is a grown up and a team player. Rooney is no " golden boy " , he is no Pele, no Maradonna and he doesn't hold a candle to previous England strikers such as Lineker, Hurst or Shearer who all have established track records as team players. Only when we make an example of this loutish, petulant behaviour will we be able to truly hold our head up with pride whether we win or lose.

This was our best opportunity since 1966 ?? How short the memories are. Anybody of Rooneys age should be able to remember the team of 1990 and I am appalled that the efforts of that great team are so easily cast aside along with the greatest manager since Alf Ramsey - does anybody remember Bobby Robson, Gary Lineker, Paul Gascoigne, Stuart Pearce etc etc ???

Let's not blame the manager, the referee, the opposing team or even the tea lady but put the blame squarely where it belongs and punish it as an example to all present and aspiring future England football players
Let's learn this lesson once and for all

A long suffering England " team " fan!!

Yes, 3/4 placing is meaningless. But the point is it allows teams to say goodbye in a dignified way. I don't want to remember my team crying crying in the centre circle and dragged away from the pitch.

In 1990, England lost 1-2 to Italy. Toto Scilachi (wrong spelling I am sure) scored and became tournament top scorer. Croatia beat Holland in 1998, and I could remember how he Dutch gamely applauded as the Croats collected their medals. Turkey beat Korea the last time, but never mind, the Koreans enjoyed seeing their team in home soil one last time anyway.

Result wise, it is meaningless. But played in the right spirit, it can be uplifting.

You loose so what? Spain lost, and played much better football than England… get a grip… and learn to drink properly… You are pathetic!

You comments about Ronaldo sicken me you sore losers! When Beckham was sent off in 1998, he was absolutely villified by the media and fans. Now this careless thug stamps on an opponent player's testicles and he is the future of English football and gets away with criticism for that awful tackle which all but finished your hopes of winning the match! Poor Rooney he didn't do it on purpose because he such a fair player!!. It's very easy to find scapegoats. When Portugal lost the 2004 Euro final, we didn't come up with any excuses for the defeat. We were just not good enough on the day and took it on the chin like men!

I am divided in my opinion of Ronaldo. On the one hand he and the Portugese team obviously set out after the first half to wind up Rooney. Their manager would have told them to do it at the break because they know Rooney was getting frustrated up front and that he has a short fuse. It is hard to blame Ronaldo because although he did hassle the ref, and wink at the bench, he also was showing the kind of fighting and winning mentality teams and players need in big matches. We have seen our players do it at club level. John Terry, Gerrard, Beckham all know how to influence refs and take a dive now and then. The problem is that our team in this world cup were not acting as a team with the spirit and togetherness that is required. They all looked tired and off their game apart from perhaps a few of them.
The system and team was wrong, the manager should take most of the blame.

Rooney deserved to get sent off. Leading up to the red card, he should have had the sense to go down when he was fouled but he ploughed on in true English (old fashioned) way, and it led to the stamp.

For all we know, Ronaldo may have thought the ref was blowing for a foul on Rooney and that's why he ran to the ref to say it was a foul in Portugals favour? It depends how you look at it.

Basically, England were poor in this world cup. There is no point blaming Ronaldo. He was on the opposite team and he wanted to win.

Sven should have been wise to Portugese antics and warned the players not to lose discipline. Portugese team are infamous cheaters. For a lot of the match they were play acting and diving. It is rife in their club football - ever wathed Porto and Benfica play? The Rooney incident should have been avoided through good management, and perhaps a little more 'cunning' from our own players.

What we need is a decent manager.

hi guys,

as i loved your blog throughout the worlddcup i would love to thank you by inviting you to dinner in cologne.
i am quite a good cook and really would like to stuff you guys with original german food (not just schnitzels as you mentioned during the blog :)). maybe i get my girlfriend to where a "dirndl" for you :)

if you are planning to head to southern germany i can recommend an area called "das allgäu" which is really great . fantastic landscape , great lakes and the alps to your feet

see u in cologne

florian

Why? Why?... understanding the meaning of life is easier than figuring out why we have fallen short again.

Can anyone give a valid reason why?.. I hear excuses left, right and centre.

Steve Mclaren was the tactioner behind all this anyway - so tell me whats likely to change when he becomes manager in the future? (apart from the very ordinary Stuart Downing becoming a regular.

Have to disagree with the comments about the 1990 team. No one thought we'd win it at all, especially after the hammering we'd taken in Euro 88 losing all 3 games. It was only when the formation was changed, Robson and Barnes dropped out injured and we beat Belguim that people began to think we'd have a chance.

Besides, 3 quarter finals in a row is our best showing since the 60's.

in reply to Chris that wants us to blame Rooney. I think you have to blame the manager for the whole shambles. He played Rooney in the wrong position. He played Lampard and Beckham when they clearly should have been dropped. He wasn't able to infuse a team spirit or system that was capable of winning any tournament since he has been with us. He took Walcott to the world cup (how very bizarre). He took Michael Owen who was blatantly rubbish and had not played since December? The list goes on!
Sven is the one to blame.
Oh and by the way, Rooney really is a a 'Golden Boy' how can you not see that? Take the blinkers off.

I agree with most bloggers. In terms of personnel and tactics, Sven is to be blamed. In the longer term, the FA is to be blamed for choosing Sven, giving him a huge contract. You suspect Beckham was made captain because of his commercial appeal, not his leadership on the field.

But we are all to be blamed. The reason why Spain cannot win is the same as England. Fear of failure is the greatest impediment to success. Eriksson said it. Aragones said it. Both understood the fragile nature of the nation team they had.

Have you noticed how England usually plays better when it is an underdog? The 1990 team did not have a prayer at the beginning of the tournament !

If Portugal were favourite (with Deco, Costihna on) England might have played better. Because on paper England appeared so superior with the depleted Portuguese team, the expectations became so high that players choke. With 10 man, England played better cos they were underdog once more.

So the first step to have a chance to win - lower expectations. Don't ever ever say we have the best team in decades, don't ever ever say we are going to win the world cup, don't ever ever we deserved to be in the finals.

... dont worry ... all of us are feeling the same pain ... the kind of pain that keeps surging thru us at such a regular rate (every 2 years). That must make us the ones with the highest pain threshold ... This time though ... I dont want to blame anyone ... everytime we blame it on sum1 ... not this time ... instead ... in the shadows of a supposed 'Golden Era' of England superstars ... I have seen a glimmer of streath ... skill and glory ... with the beginning of an ENGLISH coach again ... on a final note ... get the souvenir ... no betrayal in my eyes ... just dont wear it!

Football is LONG overdue the use of a video referee to cut out poor decisions that are made by referees on an all too often basis.

Ronaldo at fault? How many chances did he miss for England... Is 12 WC chances enough to score on for a world-famous Chelsea player other than Joe Cole with the initials FL ?? Including the penalty? Maybe FL stands for Flipping Lame or Fairly Limp, but next time L H might be preferred - Lamp Harder.

Football is LONG overdue the use of a video referee to cut out poor decisions that are made by referees on an all too often basis.

I’m English although I now live in mainland Europe. I’ve been to a few games and was at Gelsenkirchen with my wife at the weekend. We also watched Germany-Argentina the previous day as well as the France-Brazil game at the Fan Fest that evening. Let me share with you a little bit of an insider view of why most Fans are relieved that England lost and our fans left...

The pubs and restaurants around Gelsenkirchen and Buer were buzzing all weekend, expectations were running high and the beer was flowing... (Damn good Pils and Alt there actually). The atmosphere was good, clean and fun. Then the game started.

We were in the top section of the North end, where the band was. Until the end of extra time, the atmosphere was great. We sang, clapped and cheered... Then so called Fans, mostly men between 25 and 35, started throwing glasses, swearing at any non-English fan in the section, barging in front of many to have a better view. When asked to go back to their seats, flurries of verbal abuse and sexist remarks about why women (in occurrence my wife) should not be at the game: there were men (I guess they referred similar drunken, unintelligible idiots) out there with no tickets and had, apparently and obviously, a God given right to be there (instead of her)... Now most fans with partners and/or families (and there were quite a few) felt compelled to make a rather quick exit the moment the Ronaldo penalty was taken, you could fell the drunken anger seething out of these brainless few.

On the way to the Fan Fest, we witnessed again a small group of English fans letting air out of the vehicle tyres, pissing, throwing up everywhere in the streets, or being generally offensive and bullish towards other fans and locals… To my knowledge and from other games I witnessed this past fortnight, this was the first time I was unsocial behaviour. Why is this always happening with England fans?

Compare this to the other games and Fan Fests I witnessed, these few English fans always have to be offensive and drunk. When France beat Brazil, I could see both sets of fans congratulating each other, discussing the game, exchanging stories, being friends. When Germany beat Argentina the previous afternoon, fans were exchanging t-shirts and other paraphernalia. Unfortunately, whether the National team wins or looses, there is always this feeling with this small (but visible) group of English fans that they are on the edge.

My wife loved the whole weekend. She sang, cheered and clapped as loud as anyone else, but should she have felt uncomfortable and even frightened because she went to an England game?? I really don’t think so… Loutish, and unsocial behaviour seems so engrained in some English footballing circles that when witnessed abroad (even by a fellow Brit), it is purely deplorable. Especially as the Germans have tried to be as welcoming as possible (OK so we’ll never be best of friends but…), prices (apart from hotels) were not inflated, transport was free, fan fests were also free (they even had a special English Zone with ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ commentary), Information points had English speaking staff and handed out information in English, even Police presence was held back and non-confrontational.

Speaking to locals (and I have to admit here that a lot of English fans had made an effort to try to speak the local lingo), they kept saying that they wanted to meet France in the Final… Why? Because it would be a final between Friends… Rivals they may be, but there is respect between both sets of fans / nations.

Ronney's behaviour was borne of frustration but no one can say the players were not warned about the refereeing. His action was impetuous and lacking maturity. He deserved to be sent off and has to be man enough to accept the responsibility for it.

Beckham's decision to stand down as captain was the right one and was taken with dignity and diplomacy. Although he says he wants to continue to play for England he must know that there is a strong likelihood that the curtain has been drawn on his international career bearing in mind his decision. What we now need is a manager who will make the difficult decisions and start with a clean sheet of paper, blood new players like Lennon and select the players based upon the system we want to play not the other way around.

I think todays article by Phil McNulty summed up my view of the England situation perfectly. I am surprised at how dissapointed I was by England's poor showing in Germany, however the view your reporter put forward is typically the view of most of the pundits I have followed whilst living outside England and was long openly discussed by Irish pundits prior to this tournament

It seems we do have an over-inflated view of our abilities in World Football. The view I perceive living in France is very much that we need to prove ourselves in World terms first then attach the hype afterwards.

I feel like many fans that our players did not perform and the offering of long seasons and the harshness of the Premiership does not sit well when we compare other players in the remaining teams in the World Cup who play in the Premiership.

The manager rightly gets a portion of the blame but at the end France played poorly for 1 year and then put their issues aside and played as a team. The difference in attitude of the players seems to have helped in this

Can't understand why some people say Rooney deserved to be sent off!
Have you people not watched the replay's???
Rooney was simply trying be strong and
hold the ball against two defenders who
where grabbing and holding him.
People saying Rooney "should have gone
down" are idiots. Lets praise the lad
for NOT cheating.
As an F.A. qualified referee I pray for
the day we can book players for
demanding a card to be shown as I find
it as offense as a player diving.
Would also like to apologise in public to Owen Hargreaves for doubting his inclusion in the squad. I, same as most, slagged Hargreaves off up to the Sweden game but he has shown everyone his quality.
David Beckham's overall play in this tournament may not have been the best but after watching his press conference he showed how much he loves this country and the team. Thankyou Becks for being a great leader in the past and also thankyou for putting the team first by resigning from the captaincy.
My overall feeling from this campaign
is we have been cheated by Ericcson and the F.A. The money that man has taken away from grassroots football is a disgrace.

i think ur al absolutly stupid ronaldo was totally the worst n rooney shouldnt get al this grief england r the best n u lot no it its better to go out playin fair than to go on havin cheated ronaldo spent the whole game tryin to get rooney sent off n wen his chance finally came he took it n wound every england fan up he is pathetic n no1 is gona want him bac in dis country

Listen when England are up against decent opposition, they struggle. If Deco and Costinho were playing England would have been defeated in 90 mins. To expect to reach the semi's in either the Euro tournaments or the WC is simply unrealistic, England can not play 1 touch footie as a team, their play is so predictable, even N.Ireland beat you, and face it you were lucky to win against T&T Ecuador, and Paraguay!

Time to get real and recognise that the Quarters is the a good result, considering u have no Gazza or linker now. Lampard was matched most of the time as was gerrard! They flourish with world class around them, not with other average players!

No one fears you anymore, so get real ditch the English arrogance and accept you are good but never world class!!!

ronaldo is a cheat n he desrves everything he gets he spent al match tryin to get rooney out n wen the chance came he took it he wound rooney up n wen he finally reacted ronaldo made sure the ref saw everythin rooney is not to blame. ronaldo is pathetic n doesnt deserve to cum bac into r country the england players done us proud n its better to go out havin played fair than carry on as cheats

from 2 very dedicated england fans

The baltic sea, the baltic sea, the BALTIC SEA! If the weather stays fine it's absolutely wonderful. First of all, there are two world heritage sites: Stralsund and Wismar, both members of the Hanseatic League. Then there are lots of beautiful old spas, like the so called "Kaiserbaeder" Ahlbeck, Bansin and Heringsdorf on the island of Usedom, or Binz, Sellin and Goehren on the island of Ruegen. All these spas have sandy white beaches. Ruegen, the biggest german island, is a paradise for nature lovers. The same is true for Darss, a gorgeous peninsula with Ahrenshoop, a artists' colony.

Can't understand why some people say Rooney deserved to be sent off!
Have you people not watched the replay's???
Rooney was simply trying be strong and hold the ball against two defenders who where grabbing and holding him.
People saying Rooney "should have gone down" are idiots. Lets praise the lad for NOT cheating.
As an F.A. qualified referee I pray for the day we can book players like
Ronaldo for demanding a card to be shown as I find it as offensive as a player diving. Ronaldo's actions against a club team mate are simply
stunning and shows that he is not only a selfish player with the ball but also cares nothing about the people he play's football with week in and week out! How many times has Rooney stepped in to stop a player in a Premier League match getting at Ronaldo for his persistent cheating?
How can his team mates in whichever club he plays for in the future ever trust him?
Would also like to apologise in public to Owen Hargreaves for doubting his inclusion in the squad. I, same as most, slagged Hargreaves off up to the Sweden game but he has shown everyone his quality and was head and shoulders above every player on both sides.
David Beckham's overall play in this tournament may not have been the best but after watching his press conference he showed how much he loves this country and the team. Thankyou Becks for being a great leader in the past and also thankyou for putting the team first by resigning from the captaincy.
My overall feeling from this campaign
is we have been cheated by Ericcson and the F.A. The money that man has taken away from grassroots football is a disgrace and someone needs to be held accountable. Would love to see him asked the question if he has been value for money and if he is happy knowing he has taken value resources
away from developing the players of the future.

England has so much to learn about football. Ill give a quick lesson and I hope it will be to help for future success.

First of all England should be happy of a quarter final cause the squad is quite horrible to be honest.

All the big football nations in Europe has a better squad. Holland, Czech Republic, Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Portugal, Croatia.

And then there is Brazil and Argentina from South America of cause.

So there is at least 10 teams that are far better than England and why is that?

England has never learned and never seem to learn to play football at the ground(short passes at the ground) how many so called "play" goals did England do this world cup?

Yes the answer is 0. England can only produce goals on corners free kicks and good shots from out of the penalty area. Gerard’s and Coles goals was good goals though don’t get me wrong but it was just shots from outside the penalty area. England can also make some goals on Cross balls.

An interesting example is that England has not beaten Sweden in at least 30 years in a big event. How is that possible? England has always the better team but Sweden knows that if they don’t let any goals on corners or free kicks or let England shoot from outside penalty area they will very likely not score at all.

You can take a team as Italy for example they sometimes play a boring football but they know how to do short passes and that’s the most "effective" play in modern football and its been past 20 years at least. IF you don’t learn to play the short game you will never ever get any further than to quarters or maybe semi with a huge amount of luck.

Then the English players are much overrated. Beckham is probably the most overrated football player in the world. He is good at cross balls and free kicks but has anybody ever seem he beat a defender? I have never seen it happen cause he has not the skill. You cant keep a football player on the pitch cause he is famous and is good at free kicks and cross balls. Its not enough for today’s football.

Rooney he is probably the best English player but still there are a huge amount of better players en almost every big football country in Europe.

Then Gerard and Lampard. They are pretty good but they only seem to be able to score on shots outside the penalty area that’s not enough. There are at least 50 better midfielders in the world than them.

The biggest problem is the lack of skill of playing short passes.

The second biggest problem is that England think they are better than they are.

The 3rd biggest problem is much overrated players.

This is just the truth and if you can understand this and focus on it you will do better in next big football event.

I'm as disappointed as any other English folks that we went out, and I'm not going to make excuses for Englands poor all-round performance.
I would like to say though, that this is the worst World Cup tournament I have ever seen for bad refereeing decisions, and cheating of 'world class' players.
I'm concerned that these 'new tricks' that players use to get free kicks, or another played carded will carry over into the English leagues and ruin the game there too.
I will watch the remaining games (I love football), and I really hope that the final isn't decided on a bad decision or by a cheating player...
...on second thoughts, it might get something done about it - video evidence for the future perhaps?

What I don't understand is why there was so much hype about the team prior to the world cup?

Why is there so much hype about Tim Henman all the time?

Why is it that every major sporting event that England enters is accompanied by a huge amount of hype followed by a huge amount of disapointment when the team doesn't live up to the hype?

You constantly set yourselves up for disapointment England.

Why not stay in the area? The Teutoburger Wald is not far from Dortmung. At Kalkriese an Englishman (!) has discovered what might have been the battlefield where Arminius beat the Roman legions. (There might even be a lesson there). And near Detmold which in itself is a lovely old town with a castle right in the middle (and a prince still living there) there is a huge monument of Arminius built in the 19th century.

I watched England's progress during the world cup as they were the only representative from these islands to take part. Being Irish and a premier league admirer and more over, a West Ham supporter from year dot I always watch the England 'situation' develop through out these tournaments. After watching a thrilling F.A. Cup final (a precursor to the world cup) I felt there was a certain irony in watching Stephen Gerrard sitting on the ground at the end of the penalty kicks looking deflated. In his eye's as he kicked the ball you could see the uncertainty of this great warrior and advocate of the English game and one sensed he was going to miss. The same could be said of Lampard and Carragher. I feel with the English set up there are too many Chef's spoiling the broth - management and players live in fear of being vilified and the press and tabloids weigh in too much influence. The individual skill and flair at club level does not transfer to the international stage and since Bobby Robson (I feel) there has not been as strong an influence or leader at the helm. The England team looked flat and jaded and I'm sorry but I do not think David Beckham is a 'leader' in the true sense of the word. He might be an icon and that seems to appease a requirment. What that is I'm not sure. There is Way... Way too much made of WAYne Rooney. He may have a talent but must we be subjected to his immature rants and Red mist. If nothing else Ronaldo is guilty of telling his Portugese team mates how easy this guy is to whind up. Nothing new here you've seen it time and time again and yet I feel sorry in a way for the players because the expectation is that you've won the tournament now all you have to do is play the matches and it never adds up - please retire John Motson. The domestic game is in great shape. There is some superb individual skill and talented players. Why that does not transfer is a mystery and a great shame because there is no doubt you are capable on paper. Apart from including some reputations and the walking wounded. Let's face it. It was a mistake to bring an injured Owen, an injured Rooney when there was so much available talent to replace. Crouch is a nice man but not an international striker unless you're going to play route one stuff. There were other options opened to Sven and he got it wrong (never mid the the whole walcott thing)and a pity he's vilified before he even kicked a ball. The F.A got it wrong appointing him. Sven was nothing more) if not mediocre. I do not think his successor will bring you much change either. Although I wish him luck. But a gutsy man with passion who will stand on the sideline and fire up the passion (we saw Scholari do it for Portugal) someone like Pearce? Someone who has a reputation and is not afraid to shout at the big salary names in your team who under performed. One last thing. It was a long season perhaps tipified by how underperformed Lampard was? Perhaps it was that. Perhaps these 'talents' need to mature now and step up to the mark? It's not enough to court the reputation of being the 'best midfielder in the world' you have to prove it at the top. Maybe a season overseas? we all know the french international team. Very few play at home. Maybe the english game needs a jab of insperation in that way from outside it's own domestic influence. One thing is for certain. Somethings got to change. If only the Republic of Ireland had so much talent at it's discretion. Gerrard for Captain even though he broke my heart in May.

You need to put things in perspective. The only logical reason I heard anyone come up with for why England should do well in this cup was that they had an easy run. Then when they barely scraped in wins against second rate teams it was pretty obvious to me they'd need an awful lot of luck to stay in the competition. However, people were still continually telling me that England will win this world cup. The only thing that changed is that they couldn't answer me when I asked why they thought England could win.

Tis like everyone else is watching a different game altogether.

JUST GET OVER IT.

England were the worst big team in the tournament. They played more boring football than Iran! It was like watching Birmingham play. Hoof it up to Crouchy or Rooney (The finest looking strikers at the world cup). There was no hope they were going to win it.
As for Ronaldo, he did what probably 5 or 6 England players would have done in the same situatuion. It's amazing that John Terry said that he was 'Disappointed that some premiership players try to put pressure on the referee'
Yeah, like you've never done it John! By the way John, why do you pretend to be injured every time you think you're gonna be booked or every time you make a mistake (something which happened frequently at the world cup)
At the end of the day, every single team has 'cheats' or people who don't play with the spirit we'd all like them too. Ronaldo is one of those, but so is Michael Owen (Whose dives against Argentina conveniently never seem to get mentioned).
Are you telling me that if Ronaldo had stamped on John Terry, that neither Rooney, Fredinand or Neville would have been protesting to the ref? Give me a break. England are as bad for cheating as any other team. It's just their fans and press are blinder than the other teams.

I am sorry Tommies, for you the war is over. Stalag Luft III is waiting, but this time we have sabotaged the motorbikes, so no more sneaky escapes while having a nice cup of tea. You will sit tight and contemplate the futility of your 4-1-4-1 existence. To paraphrase Napoleon: "C'est magnifique, mais ce n'est pas le football!" but, as what's-her-name sang, we'll meet again ....

Something I want to get off my chest, because I've not seen it in the comments so far.

Why doesn't England ever have a playmaker on the pitch? Look at the teams that made the last 4: France with Zidane, Italy with Pirlo, Germany with Ballack, Portugal with Deco and Figo. Argentina only lost their game after they pulled Riqueleme out - and Brazil, well I think Ronaldino's been off form for a while now.

I thought that Carrick had a reasonably good shot at playmaking in the Ecuador game, though he's obviously nowhere close to the quality of the players above, and was positioned too far back anyway. Yet he seems to have been an abandoned experiment.

Thing is, this lack of a playmaker has always been an England characteristic, and I just can't understand why!

What's red white and blue and goes beep beep...? - the england open top bus, backing back into the depot.

I'm scottish and can't explain my overwhelming joy at seeing england go out again. When Rooney got sent off , you couldn't hear a thing in my street for the laughing coming from every household.
God save the queen!

i think the fundamental problem is that where England is concerned expecially in football, there is a lack of a fair point of view.
the world cup for example, according to the media and as a conseguence the fans, they had already won the competition once they had qualified for it, there was just the small matter of playing other teams and winning the matches, there was talk of the 'golden generation' coming of age, of the 40 years wait and so on, in any competition England takes part expectations are invariably raised so high, that every time the team fails to achieve anything there is always a huge low.
Someone has to be blamed, you have to see yourselves as the gallant losers, never anybody (again the media in particular) acknoleges the fact that in the end the team was just about average and not good enough to progress.

If Rooney hadn't gotten the red card, then perhaps England could've Scraped through Portugal as well . Portugal were poor without Deco. But against France it would have taken a miracle to win. Like Milton Keyes beatin Chelsea.

England are out-big deal,it wouldn't be so bad for their supporters if they hadn't convienced themselves that they had a God given right to return with the trophy, it sickens me hearing about their"world class players"and the 66 spirit and all that crap, wake up they are a bunch of over paid loosers with no spirit or team play, they play for themselves and their endorsements.The English players ie Lampard and Gerrard etc look good in the premiership because they play alongside quality players from abroad and the standard of your run of the mill english player is so poor that it makes these "stars" stand out.The FA also has serious questions to answer about employing sge on such a huge salary and who achieved nothing. The English fans should realise that they were luck to get as far as they did and remember the 4 worst games in the world cup involved england. Coincidence- i dont think so.

I disagree that England is a good team, they lacked world class basics.

They were not effective in mounting an attack out of defense. Defending Portugal attacks was top notch but then they either kicked the ball around amonst themselves or gave it away: Out of 22 lofted clearances upfield, 19 went straight to Portugal... why play such a low percentage ball when not under pressure? Talk about making it hard on yourself.

With a few exceptions, the midfield showed a lack of intensity, creativity and skill in moving towards the Portugese defense: this led to the easier way to attempt to move forward... a big boot upfield, but out of 20 lofted passes from midfield to forwards 16 went straight to Portugal. So frustrating to watch. Does anyone thing this is good football? This kind of attack gave little opportunity for overlap on the wings and support for the single foward. Again why use the low percentage ball when keeping possession on the ground is always more successful? Bad coaching or sticking to the old fashion long ball or both?

Admittedly Hargreaves and Lennon notched up the intensity significantly after losing Rooney and Beckham but the rest of midfield was still having an off day...that's inexcusable and mystifying in a World Cup quarter final and it just can't work with 10 men. For an ex-patriat Brit looking for glory, this team was an embarrassment and it was really hard to watch; they so desparately needed inspirational leadership, coordination, flow, understanding, sound tactics. The Rooney ejection, was a side issue not the central issue. If England had played at the skill level that we expected of them it would never have come down to penalties because the Portugese were the weaker of two bad teams.. so the penalaty kick failures was also a side issue. England didn't deserve to play in the semis with this kind of inept performance. Sorry.

If you fancy driving up to the Baltic Sea you might as well give Lübeck a go. It's about 100km west of Hamburg and is sort of Germany's Bath.
If you opt to do so, take a cruise on the channels which run through the older parts of town. Lübeck is just enchanting.

Re JTBertie

If you are a qualified referee, you should look carefully at the Rooney incident before posting.
The Referee thought Rooneys stamp was deliberate so he sent him off. Serious Foul Play is the Referees OPINION so no ammount of replays can disprove it.
Secondly, can you see, at any time during the incident, Ronaldo suggesting a card (Red or Yellow)? It looks to me that he thought the free kick had gone Englands way and was complaining about the stamp.
Also, as a referee, would you send someone off because an opposing player asked you to? Of course not, so what makes you think a FIFA ref would????
Ronaldo is being made a scapegoat. Everyone says England played better with 10 men. The key point is, they played better with Rooney off and Crouch on. Sven would never have made that change normally.

PS I think Portugal could win the World Cup.

What do you mean, going somewhere else before going to Berlin? Come to Berlin early and enjoy the city! There's lots to see and do here. Plus you can unpack your England jersey again; there are still a good number of England flags displayed... in my neighbourhood, at least. I'd write down a list of places to go, but it'd take up far too much space. Have to agree with florian -- I've enjoyed your blog throughout the world cup. Can't offer cooking or Dirndls, but I'd buy you a cold beer at the drop of a mail. :)
Don't risk regretting not coming here earlier -- ve haf vays of making you velcome! ;)