World Cup Team Checks: England
March 16, 2006
World Cup qualifiers
Eight wins, one draw and just one defeat mark the respectable results of the English team. Still, it did have significant trouble to outdo Poland. Home victories against Austria and Poland clarified the situation for soccer's mother country: England finished in first place in Group 6.
Stars
The English team truly does not suffer from a lack of stars. First-class players like David Beckham, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard dominate the midfield. There are also excellent strikers. Michael Owen and youngster Wayne Rooney belong to the outstanding players on the team.
Trainer
Sven Goran Eriksson has been training England's team since 2001. Signing on the Swede as the first foreigner ever to take charge of England's team was controversial from the start. An initial series with just one defeat in 19 mandatory international matches couldn't change this. But Eriksson has to clear his spot on the trainer's bench anyway after the World Cup. The Swede had told a tabloid reporter posing as a wealthy Arab sheikh about alleged illegal payments within the English Premiership for player transfers. Eriksson also made negative statements about several international players.
World Cup history
England is participating in the World Cup for the eleventh time.
1950: Preliminary round, 1954: Quarter-finals, 1958: Preliminary round, 1962: Quarter-finals, 1966: World Champions, 1970: Quarter-finals, 1982: Second round, 1986: Quarter-finals, 1990: Fourth place, 1998: Round of 16, 2002: Quarter-finals
Match schedule: preliminary round
June 10, 2006: England -- Paraguay in Frankfurt
June 15, 2006: England -- Trinidad and Tobago in Nuremberg
June 20, 2006: Sweden -- England in Cologne
World Cup base
England's team will be moving into their training quarters in the Black Forest. They are guests of the Schlosshotel Bühlerhöhe.
Outlook
The team's results are meager. In 10 World Cup tournaments, England could only win the title once: when it was host nation in 1966. In Germany this year, the team wants to make a new attempt to end this losing streak. England's most recent big achievement was reaching the semi-finals in 1990 in Italy, where it lost against Germany in a penalty shootout.