FIFA World Cup 2018: England's Young Guns Look to Fire on Big Stage | SWOT Analysis

England and World Cup football usually do not account for many happy endings, while the whole world rejoices the FIFA World Cup – the biggest event in the world, for England fans the memories have been nothing but disappointing.

Bobby Moore led England to glory in 1966, when the team lifted their only World Cup so far. Despite having the most competitive league in the world, the performances of three lions have not given fans plenty to cheer about.

David Beckham in tears when sent off against Argentina in the quarterfinals in 1998, Ronaldinho scoring from 35 yards against a hapless David Seaman in 2002, Wayne Rooney being sent off against Portugal in 2006, Frank Lampard’s sensational effort that had clearly crossed the line being disallowed against Germany in 2010 and then bowing out after only two group games in 2014.

For many, England’s biggest reason for downfall is their own media, which creates a great amount of hype going into every campaign.

This time though, things seem to be a bit different, a rather young English squad led by 24-year-old Spurs striker Harry Kane isn’t expected to bring back the trophy with them. The average of the squad is 26 – one of the youngest in the tournament.

Here is a look at what might work in their favour and what might not going into the tournament:

STRENGTH

Many England teams have often lost the battle before it has begun – often being burdened by the weight of expectations, but this team can be expected to play freely with expectations not so high from them. The likes of Kane, Dele Alli, Raheem Sterling, Jamie Vardy, Marcus Rashford, Jesse Lingard are more than capable in attack and if they play with freedom, they will trouble the best of defenses.

Another thing which might work for England is the relatively easy draw till the round-of-16. If everything goes as per plan, then England and Belgium should qualify from Group G and they will face avoid facing a one of the powerhouses in the next round.

WEAKNESS

A young team also means lack of experience of playing in World Cups, the team can easily crumble under pressure and that can mean another disappointing campaign for English fans. The Russian crowd won’t be helping their cause either.

Southgate is expected to play a three-man defence with Kyle Walker, John Stones and Harry Maguire the likely starters. There is always room for a mistake there with no real leader.

OPPORTUNITIES

England should take this World Cup as a stepping stone going into the future tournaments, the core of the team looks set for a long time to come and with the team performing well at the U-17 and the U-23 level, this means that the talent is there. Going out there and playing with absolute freedom should be the only thing on Harry Kane and co’s mind.

THREATS

We have already seen an innocuous gun tattoo by Raheem Sterling snowballing into a major controversy. The English media needs to be careful and ensure that they don’t derail their own team’s campaign, as has been the case in the past.

Southgate goes into the tournament with the backing from the FA that even a disappointing campaign won’t end in him losing the job and that’s the way it should be, England are still a team that is to reach its best potential and the players should just look to go out and enjoy the experience of playing in a World Cup.

England Squad:

Goalkeepers: Jack Butland (Stoke), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Nick Pope (Burnley).

Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Fabian Delph (Manchester City), Phil Jones (Manchester United), Harry Maguire (Leicester), Danny Rose (Tottenham Hotspur), John Stones (Manchester City), Kieran Trippier (Tottenham Hotspur), Kyle Walker (Manchester City), Ashley Young (Manchester United).

Midfielders: Dele Alli (Tottenham Hotspur), Eric Dier (Tottenham Hotspur), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Jesse Lingard (Manchester United), Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Chelsea).

Forwards: Harry Kane (Tottenham), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Raheem Sterling (Manchester City), Jamie Vardy (Leicester), Danny Welbeck (Arsenal).