Eight Reasons Why England Could Surprise Us at FIFA World Cup 2018

It’s approaching fast, the start of the 21st Football World Cup. June 14th, 2018 all eyes will be on the kick off as hosts Russia face Saudi Arabia in Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow. The final will take place in the same stadium on July 15. That’s a whole calendar month of world-class football, the largest FIFA World Cup EVER, with 32 teams taking part.

Who is going to walk away with the trophy? The favorites seem to be perennial powerhouses Spain, Germany, Brazil, and France. And as usual, England are being written off already. But here a few reasons (8 actually) why I think the three lions may surprise a few people…

1. The Gaffer

Gareth Southgate has been there before as a player and a coach, he played 57 times for his country including two European Championships and one World Cup. He missed the penalty kick that knocked England out of Euro 1996 at the hands of their bitter rivals, Germany. He has also coached a number of players on the current England squad (Jordan Pickford, Dele Alli, Marcus Rashford, Jesse Lingard, and Ruben Loftus-Cheek to name a few) during a three-year stint as England’s Under 21 manager. Those relationships with players cannot be understated at major tournaments, where everyone is often cooped up together in a hotel when not playing, just ask Roy Keane and Mick McCarthy. Although he has a reputation as a bit of a yes man, I like Southgate’s direct style of play and his consistency when asked questions by the media. It seems as though he has a plan and he is sticking to it, they are even practicing penalty kicks in training.

2. The Draw

(Click here for pdf fillable wallchart) I can see Southgate's men easily reaching the quarterfinals and from then on it really is a lottery. England is in Group G along with Belgium, Tunisia, and Panama. The group draw seems to favor the two European Nations and it’ll be a huge surprise if they are not the two who progress to the next round. I’m sure the final group standings, and thus England’s later fixtures, will depend on the result of the game where the two countries meet in Kaliningrad on June 28. One thing is for sure, their opponents for the Round of 16 will come from Group H, arguably the weakest group in the tournament, on paper, as the only one without a former World Cup winner with Poland, Senegal, Columbia, and Japan all battling out to progress. It is then, in the quarterfinals, where England could first meet a world power in either Germany from Group F or Brazil from Group E. But they might not, they could also meet Sweden or Mexico!

3. The Squad

(Click here for announcement video) England and Saudi Arabia are the only nations going to the World Cup for whom all 23 members of their squad are based in their own country, with every single English player plying their trade in the Premier League. The squad has an average age of just 26, with only Nigeria coming in younger at an average age of 25.9 years. Most of this squad, however, have played for the England National team at a number of age-groups now and as previously mentioned, a few of them have also already played for the same coach at the Under 21 level. So it would seem that in spite of their young age, they are actually experienced international footballers who have youth on their side. With no real megastar in the squad like David Beckham or Wayne Rooney, like at past tournaments, it seems very much like this World Cup will have a completely different feel, no egos! They also have no major injury concerns, although I would have liked to have seen Alfie Mawson fit and able to play. He had a great season for a mediocre Swansea side.

4. Jordan Henderson

Somewhat of an unsung hero in Liverpool’s great 2017/18 campaign, Jordan captained his club to the Champions League Final and a fourth-place finish in the Premier League. He’ll be the team’s vice-captain this summer behind Kane, but even without the armband, you would expect him to lead by example; a box-to-box midfielder who will not shy out of tackles and play a decent pass or two. He can also strike a ball from distance! He has also played a number of big tournaments: Euro 2012 and 2016, as well as the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. That experience will be invaluable.

5. Harry Kane

I think Harry is the only player in this squad that would make a Real Madrid starting eleven (Dele Alli has a ways to go yet), and the number one thing I like about Harry Kane is his attitude. He seems to have a real passion for the game and is only ever featured in the news for the right reasons. England has not had a prolific number 9 like Kane since Alan Shearer. His goalscoring record for club and country speak form themselves. He has now scored 13 goals in 24 appearances for his country.

6. Recent Results

A record of played ten, eight wins and two draws in World Cup qualification showed that even amongst the drama of Sam Allardyce’s reign and Wayne Rooney leaving the international setup, England still carved out results. More recently, albeit in friendly games, England have been playing well too. A win away in Amsterdam over the Dutch and draw against Italy at Wembley saw some impressive and mature performances from this young England side. The first half against Nigeria was equally impressive too.

7. Success of Younger Age Groups

Our National team has enjoyed some recent success at lower age groups with the Under 17s losing the European Championships Final to Spain on penalties. Rhian Brewster and Jadon Sancho both had incredible tournaments. The Under 21s then won the prestigious Toulon Tournament and lost out in the semi-finals of the European Championships on penalties to, you guessed it, Germany. Oh, and the under 20s lifted the FIFA Under 20 World Cup in South Korea, the under 17s won the World Cup at a canter in India and the under 19s lifted the UEFA Under 19s trophy in Georgia, too. The future is definitely bright for the National Team with the likes of Phil Foden, Marcus Edwards, Tammy Abraham, and Ryan Sessegnon to name just a few talents who have shone through. You can certainly see why Gareth Southgate is putting his faith in youth.

8. Expectations

No one is expecting them to do anything of note this World Cup, this lack of pressure can only help the team. I am sure England will still come to a standstill when their games are on TV though.

What do you think? Tweet me @BlueMcEvilly