For Harry, England and St George!
More than 50 years after England’s finest hour in football when it won the World Cup, our expectations of the national team have headed as far downwards as the fortunes of the country’s industrial base since 1966. England has failed to qualify for three FIFA World Cups since then, peaking at fourth place in 1990 and coming 26th in Brazil four years ago.
Too depressed to read on? Don’t be! Beyond perennial favourites Brazil, Germany, France and Spain - and notwithstanding our dismal performance in 2014 - bookies have placed England as seventh seed (odds 16/1) from a field of 32 as the tournament kicks off this month. Realistically, there is no great science to making such prices after the first five or six, except that England knows what to do, has done it before and there are always surprises.
Manager Gareth Southgate has little to lose. He is taking an approach that many CEOs in business might find refreshing in these straitened times: taking risks and breaking from the norm to achieve a different and better result. Southgate’s modus operandi is understated, low key and modest, with no room for a ‘star culture’. He has one exceptional striker and captain, Tottenham’s Harry Kane, but has omitted other big names to field the youngest squad of all playing in Russia this summer. A performance from this team in line with its number seven ranking would be no disgrace and might provide a platform to build on. Germany’s winning football managers have always favoured playing the long game and growing young talent, promoting the value of an effective, attacking team over stars and talisman players.
In team sports or business, long term planning is the difference between standing still and moving forward. Like the best CEOs focused on sustainable growth, if Southgate has really set himself a clear and ambitious target, he must stick to it and gear everything along the way towards his ultimate goal. By not losing sight of the big picture, he might surprise us in Russia and keep his job to take England to the next level.