Stoke City striker, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Michael-Owen-c25355, believes that England have failed to perform well at the international stage due to their failure to handle the crushing expectations of the fans and the media.
The English International revealed that the Three Lions players used to dwell too much on how the fans will respond to their bad performance before any game – an underlying factor behind their shortcomings in the major competitions.
England have boasted some of the finest players in the world of football over the years. However, they are renowned for choking in pressure situations, especially when it comes to the knock-out stages of a tournament.
The Three Lions, who last won a major tournament back in 1966 when they beat West http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Germany-c2904 in the World Cup final, looked impressive in the group stages of this year’s Euro competition, but faltered in the quarterfinal on a penalty shootout.
The English media and supporters are often accused of creating too much hype of their team before the start of any event, a factor which serves to mount added pressure on the team.
The veteran striker couldn’t agree more, as he feels that the fear of the crowd’s response and jeers was the major reason behind their under achievements at the international arena.
He said that some of the players who do remarkably well with their respective clubs fail to do so for their country, as they are more comfortable playing in club football.
“I’ve heard many people in the past leading up to http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/England-c749 games or after England games talking about what the papers are going to say the next day about them, or how they’re going to get booed,” he told the reporters.
“It’s a very intense feeling playing for your country and I don’t think people can express themselves, or I don’t think people do express themselves, as well as they can or they do at club level. At that level, you feel loved, the fans are on your side,
you’re used to playing with the players week in, week out.”
England are currently competing in World Cup Qualifiers and are set to play two games over the next week.
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