Pitch inspection: England's players got a look at the Donbass Arena in Donetsk on Monday

But Hodgson and his players are not daring to dream. While the coaches have sat through hours of analysis of their opponents, the players have focused on recovery then on what is expected of them. There is a huge temptation to plan ahead and start picking the quarter-final they would prefer. Gerrard, however, was having none of it.

‘I am trying to force myself not even to talk about quarter-finals,’ said the captain. ‘It would be very disrespectful to the opposition tomorrow, who are dangerous. We have watched tapes. Their combination play in the middle and around the box is good. If I started talking about quarter-finals and we slipped up, I would never forgive myself.’

Hodgson echoed the sentiment and further explained the dangers presented by a Ukraine team  playing at home and needing to win. As Hodgson said, it is about more than Andriy Shevchenko.

‘They are a very good counter-attacking team,’ he said. ‘They are a very quick team, breaking out of defence. They also have the ability to keep the ball very well in the middle of the field through Tymoshchuk and Nazarenko, with Voronin or Shevchenko dropping deep. We have been impressed with them.’

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