England and the last eight

Supporting the England football team really should come with a government health warning. Tournaments come and go, hopes and expectations grow as the journey begins, until we arrive at the inevitable destination of disappointment twinned with despair. You think we may have learned by now. 

The first tournament I followed should have prepared me for this. England did not even make it to Euro 84, as a superb Danish team - laughingly dismissed by the English press - qualified and piled pressure on Bobby Robson. Things can only get better?

At least Robson took us to the quarter finals at Mexico 86, yet this would give me a first taste of finals frustration. Since then it has been a mixed bag when England have reached the last eight of major tournaments. There have been a few doses of luck - both good and bad - tears, penalties, a broken bone, winking, strangely comfortable wins, and a penalty in 2022 that still has not landed.

England at Euro 88

England went to West Germany as one of the favourites to win Euro 88. What followed was a nightmare from start to finish that threatened the future of both manager and the national team.

It's not unusual for the national press to go slightly overboard when assessing the prospects of England just before a major tournament. Rightly or wrongly, many squads have departed for World Cups and European Championships with a nation expecting. Germany 2024 will see the hype ramped up to 11.

You can see why many see this as the ideal opportunity for England to end all those years of hurt. The squad Gareth Southgate has at his disposal - certainly from an attacking point of view - suggests England can go one stage better than 2021. But whatever happens, it surely has to be better than their last European Championship in Germany.

1985: England in Mexico

If you're a football lover who doesn't like cricket then I feel for you, as Chaka Khan might say. Those long summer months can be hellish without any action, as you count down to pre-season tours, friendlies, and the beginning of a new campaign that may just be the year that your club shines (or not).

The last few summers have been slightly unusual. Euro 2020 took place in 2021, and due to money the climate in Qatar, the 2022 World Cup has been pushed back to November/December. We do have the World Cup play-off and the Nations League to keep us going, but there is nothing quite like a proper summer tournament.

1987: Spain v England

Any Real Madrid fans with a particularly close affiliation to the Spanish national team may well have been sick of the sight of Gary Lineker during the early part of 1987. After netting an El Classico hat-trick in Barcelona’s 3-2 win at the Nou Camp on January 31, Lineker’s thirst for goals continued as England visited Spain’s capital eighteen days later.

1986 World Cup: England v Morocco

“Bobby Robson can start looking for alternative employment if England fail to reach the last 16 of the World Cup.” The words of Harry Miller in the Daily Mirror, under the headline ‘Nice and easy for England’, seemed to imply that Bobby Robson’s team basically had a bye out of the 1986 World Cup group stages. But the course for England at major tournaments is rarely smooth.

1982 FA Cup Sixth Round: Leicester v Shrewsbury

The last time Leicester City won an FA Cup Sixth round match, they had to do it the hard way, using three different keepers on an afternoon of gripping drama.

After suffering relegation to Division Two at the end of the 1980/81 season, Leicester City initially struggled for consistency at the start of the next campaign. But come the start of a very wintry 1982, the team turned the corner. The combination of a memorable FA Cup run, and an upturn in league form, made for exciting times.

1985 FA Cup Third round: Burton Albion v Leicester City

When Northern Premier League Burton Albion were drawn against Division One Leicester City in the 1985 FA Cup third round, on paper it appeared to be a romantic tie. The typical David v Goliath clash, the outside chance of a shock, and a day in the spotlight for the part-timers of Burton, provided all the classic ingredients required for this stage of the FA Cup. Sadly, the fixture ended up making headlines for all the wrong reasons.

SPOTY: Unlucky losers in the 1980s

There were many great winners of the BBC Sports Personality of the Year (SPOTY) award in the 1980s, but also a few sporting figures who never had their names engraved on the shields housed on the famous old trophy.

This week I am taking a look back at some of the unlucky SPOTY losers, including a couple of snooker stars, a Grand Slam winning captain, and a golden boot winner who would probably be a cert for the SPOTY trophy in the current age.

Euro 88 England squad: All The Way

In 1988 you were never more than six minutes away from hearing a Stock, Aitken and Waterman record. So it was no surprise when the trio teamed up with England's European Championship squad to produce All The Way, the title of the song indicating just how confident SAW and the rest of the football following nation were before the tournament. Oh dear.