Are England Just Not Very Good?

TL;DR

England appear worse than they are due to missing key players in friendlies, but real concerns exist around squad form, cohesion, and tactical depth ahead of 2026.

Key Points

• 1.England have been consistently elite for nearly a decade despite the narrative. They are the only European nation to reach the last 16 of each of the last four major tournaments, never dropped below the top five FIFA rankings in seven years, and reached two finals and a semi-final in that span.
• 2.The Uruguay and Japan defeats are heavily misleading. England were without Kane, Rice, Bellingham, Saka, Stones, and Reece James — over half the likely starting XI — making the results almost meaningless as preparation indicators.
• 3.England's biggest structural problem is Premier League fixture congestion. With 38 league games, two domestic cups, no winter break, and no easy fixtures, players arrive at tournaments burnt out — what Michel Platini called 'lions in winter, lambs in summer.'
• 4.None of England's attacking midfield options are in strong form. Saka, Bellingham, Foden, Rashford, Palmer, and Gordon — who contested three roles behind Kane at Euro 2024 in career-best form — are all underperforming, with Foden reportedly at risk of missing the squad entirely.
• 5.The Kane dependency concern is valid but universal. Kane has scored 48 goals in 40 games and already matched Maradona and Ronaldo's World Cup goal tallies; every elite nation faces an equivalent drop-off from their talisman, including Argentina without Messi and Spain without a genuine striker.
• 6.Thomas Tuchel's management style is the expected trade-off. Unlike Southgate's diplomat approach, Tuchel is publicly challenging Foden, effectively freezing out Trent Alexander-Arnold, and reshuffling the centre-back hierarchy — high-risk but consistent with his track record of winning trophies at every club.
• 7.England's midfield partnership lacks competitive testing. Anderson and Rice, the likely World Cup starting duo, will not have played together against a top-35 ranked team before facing Croatia (ranked 11th) in England's opening World Cup group game.
• 8.England are joint second favourites for the 2026 World Cup despite the gloom. The author argues selective framing makes any squad sound elite or terrible, and that lowered expectations after the friendlies may actually benefit England heading into the tournament.