The Football Association has launched a scathing attack on the so-called “golden generation” of players who failed to qualify for Euro 2008.
“There are clearly issues to be addressed around the structure of the senior England team,” said Lord Mawhinney, the chairman of the Football League and a board member.
“We’ve talked about the manager today. We haven’t talked about the players and the ability of the players to deliver and to deliver under pressure.
“It was Steve McClaren who said he’d be judged by the results. The results haven’t been very impressive. Last night [the 3-2 defeat to Croatia] wasn’t very impressive,” Mawhinney continued.
“I’ve been brought up over the last few years believing that this was the ‘golden generation’, but I have to tell you that if this is the golden generation, the sooner we move away from the gold standard the better.”
That term was originally coined by Adam Crozier, then chief executive of the FA, though it has seemed incresaingly inappropriate for an underachieving England squad.
