I remember England’s first game of the 2018 World Cup.
Tunisia were the opponents, with the Three Lions playing in their first tournament match since the Iceland debacle two years’ earlier. That loss marked the lowest point of English football, with their opponents digging deep to secure an astonishing 2-1 win. After years of underachieving, true mediocrity was confirmed on a nightmare night in Nice.
It was a catastrophic defeat. Not only did it signal the last hurrah for the final few remnants of the so-called ‘Golden Generation’, it changed the mood across the nation. Why bother cheering on overpaid, inconsistent players when they go and throw it all away? As the Tunisia game approached, many seemed to be asking exactly that.
Certainly, there seemed little point in booking your local. Pubs weren’t expecting the tournament to be a success given what had happened at Euro 2016. Expectations were, unlike a decade previously, extremely low. Just getting out of the group was considered progress.
But then England beat Tunisia, with Harry Kane scoring late on. It banished some of the demons from the Iceland game and the Three Lions had something to roar about once more. Ever since, everything has changed.
England, at long last, have become a team the nation genuinely believes in again.
That may sound obvious now, but it is a remarkable transformation when viewed through the lens of the past decade. Supporters no longer tune in fearing embarrassment. Instead, they expect England to compete with the very best.
The results over the past decade back it up.
England will fancy their chances of reaching the World Cup semi-finals when they lock horns with Norway
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England players look on in horror following their defeat to Iceland at Euro 2016 | GETTY
A World Cup semi-final, against all odds, in 2018. A first major tournament final for 55 years at Euro 2020. Another quarter-final appearance at the World Cup in Qatar before penalty heartbreak against France. Then another European Championship final in Germany two years later.
Silverware has remained agonisingly elusive, yet England have quietly become one of international football’s most reliable tournament teams. Unlike so many gifted sides that came before them, this group expects to reach the latter stages.
With Thomas Tuchel now at the helm, that expectation has only intensified.
It has been a positive first tournament for the German, who has built on the brilliant work of Gareth Southgate before him.
England have become a major force at major tournaments over the past decade
| PAEngland’s record at the World Cup | GETTY/ GB NEWS
What fans are wondering is whether he can find the final winning ingredient needed to turn England into champions of the world.
That is why Saturday’s quarter-final against Norway feels different to so many knockout matches England have played in years gone by.
Nobody is simply delighted to have reached the last eight. Nobody is treating qualification as an achievement in itself.
Instead, supporters are daring to look beyond Erling Haaland and Norway towards the semi-finals and, perhaps, another shot at football’s biggest prize.
England beat Tunisia in their first match of the 2018 World Cup
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The atmosphere across the country reflects that shift.
Pubs are full once again. Beer gardens have been booked weeks in advance. Families are gathering around televisions believing, rather than merely hoping, that England can go all the way.
That simply wasn’t the case before Tunisia in 2018.
Back then, optimism was fragile. Negativity swirled, the phrase ‘it’s coming home’ reduced to the stuff of mockery. Today, expectation is the norm.
England players celebrate their World Cup win over Mexico | GETTY
England have spent the past eight years shedding the scars of Iceland, replacing them with memories of deep tournament runs and nights that have brought the country together once more.
The final step remains the hardest of all.
But if there is one thing this generation has changed forever, it is the mood surrounding the national team. England no longer arrive at major tournaments just hoping to avoid humiliation.
They arrive believing they can win them.
