As domestic and continental club football all over Europe
comes to an almost unwatchable climax throughout the month of May, the European
Championships seem to have approached with unerring haste. In just under 4
weeks’ time attention will be firmly on national sides as co-hosts Poland will
face Greece to kick of the 2012 European Championships. The third biggest
sporting tournament on the planet, lower in popularity to only the football
World Cup and the Olympic Games, Euro 2012 will undoubtedly be the locus for
male dialogue this summer.
In Britain, the media will predictably be saturated with
coverage of the England team – and rightly so. In reality, the English are the
only British nation ever likely to win a major international tournament for the
foreseeable future. It’s only natural to offer support and optimism towards
your country at such a time. It’s not the quantity of coverage that vexes myself,
and many fellow Scottish fans, rather it is the quality.
The English media has long been synonymous with delusions of grandeur. A World Cup win on home soil some 46 years ago seems to give the English a God given passage to glory - at least in the eyes of many of the tabloids. The popinjays in the press come out their nests to plangently chirp about England’s ‘destiny’ and their ominous success at upcoming tournaments.
Optimism is a salubrious trait, so long as it’s combined
with realism. Scotland itself is not immune to severe bouts of romanticism towards
our own football team. In 1978 the majority of the nation believed it was
inevitable for Scotland to return from Argentina as champions of the world.
Lessons have been learnt since then however. Perhaps our own, often pessimistic
approach to our national team is inimical to our performance, though?
Regardless, the English media is transfixed by the Premier
League, maintaining a steadfast belief that it is the strongest in the world by
quite some way. The Serie A is oft branded as ‘boring’, the Spanish Liga –
ultimately a better league – is dismissed as ‘Scotland in the sun’, given the
predictable nature of a two horsed raced for the championship between Real
Madrid and Barcelona. This insular, myopic view often leads to English fans and
media being bewildered at a lack of accomplishment at the Euros and World Cup.
When England exit at the stage their ability merits, people are stunned, the
whole team is villainized and responsibility is wrongly placed on the shoulders
of the manager. Better international sides are belittled because they don’t
receive the same media focus as the English squad. Poor research and depth of
knowledge, leaves pundits stupefied when a team full of players with names they
struggle to pronounce resist expected English ascendancy. (See Martin Keown’s
verdict on Denmark’s fate this summer)
I feel for Hodgson. With a frankly unmerited weight of expectation on his shoulders, anything less than a medal will probably be considered as another failure. In reality, a semi-final place would mean England have overachieved this summer.
England are a good side but they are far from good enough to
justify home grown confidence. The squad contains some genuine world class
players: Wayne Rooney, Joe Hart and Ashley Cole could swagger into any dressing
room in Poland or Ukraine this summer and command a place in the team. However
the Lions have grown older, and weaker. Previously imposing figures at the
heart of the defence, Terry and Ferdinand are past it. Their own respective
club seasons, for various reasons, will not be causing many restless nights for
Europe’s top marksmen this summer. In fact, even inclusion in the squad is
debatable for that reason. The side is littered with weaknesses that top teams
will no doubt take advantage of. Rooney missing the group stages could well be
the coup de grâce for England.
I’d love to be
proven wrong, though. Despite the overtly biased and sorely predictable TV coverage we will be
inflicted to in Scotland, I will be firmly behind England’s quest for glory, albeit with more than a hint of realism.
Darren Dalrymple
Twitter: @DarrenDalrymple
Twitter: @DarrenDalrymple
