I guess I'll die another day...

That’s precisely what England are saying to themselves at this point of time. Yes, they’ve lived to fight another day in Germany, but it’s going to be just another day, only one more day.
Portugal or Netherlands would determine their future in this World Cup, and as I write this, neither you nor I nor the rest of the world knows who it’s gonna be. But one thing’s for sure. England have had it dead damn easy till now, but it ain’t getting easy from here on.
Continuing to be the die hard English fan that I am, and given a choice between Portugal and the Dutch, I would pick neither, but under the circumstances we're in now, I’d wish for the Dutch. And I’d substantiate this wish by saying that the Dutch look weak at the back, and that’s England’s chance, the only chance. Scolari I’m sure is already plotting England’s downfall again, and if he were to get there, no one would dispute the fact that he’d win the battle over Sven once again, a repeat of Euro 2004. In comparison, Marco Van Basten does have a very energetic and young squad, the kinds that get over excited every now and then, and herein lies England’s chance.
I’m struggling to look at the positives they’ve had from this game, and there’s hardly anything to count from. No team is ever gonna win the world cup by scoring from dead ball situations. You need to make more of open play, and crack defenses open, the kinds England are not able to do right now. They look listless, directionless, unfocused, dispassionate, disillusioned, wary, creatively lost in a maze and physically exhausted. And yet again, it’s the Sven aroma! Initially, I was happy that he’d gone with the 4-5-1 system, somewhere deep down thinking, he did read my blog afterall! But then, you can't test something in a knock out match can you, you need to have worked on it in the past and ensured that it would work to your advantage. Did England’s performance suggest that they worked on this formula earlier– NO!
As I tire my eyes to look through the statistics of this game and what it unfolds for the future, the only thing that hits me is this. England’s most energetic (and I use the word energetic, not best) performance came against Sweden – A European nation. Whom are they gonna face next – A European nation! The other 3 teams they’ve seen off till now have been non-European, having their distinct way of playing football, the kinds England struggle to get used too. Most European countries play the same brand of football, the pacy, hard fought midfield battles, and this is what England is decently good at, though they’re yet to show that as well. As I look at the the Dutch or the Portuguese, I’ve come to realize, that they’ll stretch England, and in turn England can stretch them too. Whether they really do it, is left to them. Though, a close watch at the Sweden game would make you ponder, that Sweden did stretch them after all, and they did stand up to the test, albeit with a couple of defensive blunders. That’s precisely the only positive I can take out of this game!
If I had the rights to enter the England dressing room today, I’d go in there and stick this banner up loud and clear – ‘You’re just living to die another day!’