Job to be done: Roy Hodgson must prepare his England side for the World Cup qualifiers

Hodgson did not dwell too long on the specifics, and he was in no mood to declare an end to the international careers of his older players. He quite rightly acknowledged that some of the more senior members of his squad, in particular Steven Gerrard and John Terry, had been among England’s finest performers here in eastern Europe.

Terry’s obvious lack of pace does force England to defend deep and on the international stage that can create its own problems. But he deserves credit for the way he played at Euro 2012, not least against Italy.

Clearly, however, Hodgson has a vision that includes players such as Jack Wilshere and Kyle Walker, Gary Cahill and Chris Smalling. Not to mention more attacking flair in the form of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Theo Walcott, who would have taken England’s fifth penalty in Kiev had the quarter-final not already been settled by cooler, more clinical opponents.

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