Martyn Ziegler: England in good hands as they follow German blueprint

The good news, however, is that the powers-that-be have already seen the light. Change in youth football is under way but it is a process that will take 10 years to bear fruit.

The exit of Roy Hodgson’s side to Italy via the ‘lottery’ of penalties in the quarter-finals – actually, luck plays only a minor role in these shoot-outs – should neither camouflage the failings nor overstate them.

The positive points first.

England have excellent defenders, arguably the best back four in the tournament, and they have players coming through with Phil Jones, Chris Smalling and Kyle Walker capable of replacing current incumbents.

In Hodgson, England have a shrewd manager who is adept at making the team play to their strengths.

Any team would have suffered with the absentees England endured: Jack Wilshere, Wayne Rooney for the first two games, Frank Lampard. There are also reasons to be positive about young players emerging, including Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Now the negatives.

England’s lack of technique, especially in midfield, was embarrassing.

The lack of strength in depth overall is almost pitiful. The best players were Steven Gerrard and John Terry, both of whom have been on the England scene for a decade or more.

England still do not have the psychological rigour to deal with the stress of the penalty shoot-out. It is beyond belief that this has not been addressed.

England would love to be Germany, a near-perfect blend of skill, speed and power, and it is not that long since the Germans went through the same kind of anguished introspection that the English have been engaged in since the 2010 World Cup.

The German plan was put in place in 2000, and began to blossom two years ago, with a bumper harvest in evidence at this tournament.

The Premier League and FA are adamant the new academy system, the EPPP, will go along the same lines. A young player will see the hours in which he plays or is coached almost triple between the ages of 10 and 18.

The FA have also embraced a minor revolution in youth football, making time spent on the ball a priority, something achieved by reducing team sizes, pitches and goals until players are into their teens.

The new centre of excellence for coaching is opening soon in Burton.

It will be years before the success of the new systems can be judged, but on a more immediate level, England certainly look to be in good hands going into the World Cup qualifying campaign with Hodgson at the helm.