Latest slice of luck lets England dream again

Nobody saw Roy Hodgson sneak into Gdynia on the eve of Euro 2012 but he was surely there; how else do you explain how the luck of the Irish, so painfully missing in the group stages in northern Poland, has turned up wearing an England shirt in Ukraine — and like a disloyal cat fed cuts of salmon by a wealthy neighbour, shows no signs of returning home?

There probably wasn’t a pundit in Europe who gave England a prayer of winning this tournament before it began given the chaotic nature of their preparation; but with luck on their side suddenly even the most reluctant Anglophile must be wondering if it really could happen.

The fortune that deserted Ireland in their disastrous campaign is very much in Hodgson’s camp after his team battled their way to a 1-0 victory over Ukraine to finish top of Group D and secure a quarter-final against an unconvincing Italy side in Kiev on Sunday.

They probably wouldn’t be there if linesman Istvan Vad, standing only yards away, hadn’t failed to notice that Marko Devic’s shot, cleared dramatically by John Terry from under his own crossbar in Donetsk, was already over the line.

They probably wouldn’t be there if France, who dominated the opening match in the group against Hodgson’s side, had scored with more than one of their 21 attempts at goal after enjoying 65% of possession.

They probably wouldn’t be there if Theo Walcott’s very first touch against Sweden hadn’t mysteriously ended up in the net even though it was hit straight down the middle towards keeper Andreas Isakkson; and they probably wouldn’t be here much longer had they finished second in Group D and ended up with Spain next in the last eight, either.

But all those things did go in England’s favour — and so you have to surmise that Hodgson’s much-derided side do now have a chance of winning their first international trophy since 1966.

It’s certainly the view of some his players, who for the first time in the mixed zone in Donetsk on Tuesday night began to talk about winning the tournament, something they were achingly desperate to avoid during the build-up to Euro 2012.

“We want to go and win it now. We’re here to win the trophy,” said defender Joleon Lescott; and you cant get much clearer than that.

Even talisman Wayne Rooney, who scored the winner in Donetsk but who in reality produced a pretty desperate personal performance, was willing to consider the prospect after bemoaning his terrible luck in previous tournaments — injured in 2004, sent off in 2006, and woeful in 2010 when Frank Lampard’s goal against Germany, which definitely did cross the line, wasn’t awarded.

“Maybe it’s a bit of karma,” said the Manchester United striker. “But even if their shot did go over the line I don’t think we were lucky. We deserved to win the game.

“As for me, I’ve played better but it was my first game for a while so it was always going to take time to get into it. There were a few sloppy things. But I was always getting opportunities to score goals and although I should have maybe had more I was pleased I got one.

“There’s no reason why we can’t go a long way in this tournament now. We’ve got the squad, we’re more organised than we ever have been, we are hard to beat.

“If we keep doing that and keep working hard then there’s no reason we can’t go really far and be in with a shout of winning it. We’ve got a big belief in ourselves.”

Despite evidence to the contrary — the evidence that says England’s centre-back partnership is slow, that they don’t create enough chances; that they are over-reliant on Steven Gerrard in midfield and under-staffed there too — it’s hard not to agree in some part with Rooney.

England may not be the greatest team in the world but they are a side that is clearly growing in confidence and one that makes up for a lack of top class talent in some areas with a willingness to work hard for each other and for a manager they trust.

In a tournament in which even favourites Spain have shown signs of weakness (remember their turgid 1-1 draw against Italy when playing with no strikers; and also an undeserved 1-0 win over Croatia in the final match of Group C) nobody so far has looked unbeatable.

Germany began well but were fortunate to get past Denmark in their final group game, while France were woeful against Sweden; and Portugal, so exclusively reliant on Cristiano Ronaldo, have been hit and miss on their route to the last eight, too.

It all means this tournament is open for anyone to win; and that includes England.

As long as that lucky, disloyal cat doesn’t fancy a bit of pasta of course…