McClaren ready for his date with destiny

THE phoney war is over.

After the fifth, and easiest, of a successive run of three-goal wins, England and Steve McClaren move forward to their date with destiny in Moscow knowing success or failure will probably determine their Euro 2008 fate.

Win on Wednesday and England will have booked their place in Austria and Switzerland next summer with a month to spare, draw and they can at least begin to dust off their passports. Defeat, however, and McClaren’s next major journey might be to the job centre.