Lucky!!! That's something that the English rarely say about their team in major international competitions. It always seem like they have the worst of luck!
All the way back to the 1986 World Cup where they were undone by a goal scored by Maradona with his hand!!!
In the 1998 World Cup, Argentinian theatrics got David Beckham sent off and they eventually got knocked out of the tournament in that game.
In 2002, Beckham, their captain and star player broke his metatarsal just before the World Cup and while he played in the World Cup, he was clearly not fully fit and did not perform well.
Similarly, in 2006, Rooney also broke his metatarsal before the World Cup and he also was not in best shape when he played during the World Cup and he under-performed.
In 2010, Lampard had a perfectly good goal disallowed!!!
So for a change, it was nice to see that luck favours England for a change last nite! The Ukrainians had a perfectly good goal against England not given - and this eventho there was a 4th official standing at the goal line looking at the ball!!!
Are things gonna be different for England this time round? Well... perhaps. In my view, while they did get a lot of bad luck previously, it was just a convenient cover-up of the fact that they were just not good enough. For example. Lampard's disallowed goal against the Germans - Germany was clearly far more superior than the English - that even if the goal was counted, it may not have mattered. Others have a different view on this of course.
Having said that, i have been pleasantly surprised that i have not been bored to death by the English - as i had expected to be! Even last nite, their passing were pretty good - short passes were neat and Gerrard's long passes were accurate. We also have a pretty reliable goalie now. So with a bit of luck on our side, this could mean that things should be different this time?
Sure, they are not as good as the Spanish - but that doesn't mean that the Spanish are gonna win! Playing the best football and being the better team does not necessarily guarantee victory - ask the Polish and the Russians. Ask Barcelona and Bayern Munich!
I'm still supporting the Spannish - but sentiments makes my heart feel good for the English!
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