Opinion: Another golden generation in the making for England

Despite only reaching the semi-finals of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, there was a feeling of success in England. They missed out on the biggest trophy in the footballing world after being knocked out by Croatia in the semi-final stage of the World Cup in Russia, but despite another big event defeat, this time things felt different.

The reason can be pointed out to be the little expectations from this side in comparison to the ones who previously participated in past World Cups and the Euros. This England side came into the tournament with relatively younger players and less known faces than in previous occasions.

So should expectations be blamed for their past under-performance? The English teams in the last decade and a half had some world class players, and so higher expectations. They were known as the golden generation of English football.

When you have players like Beckham, Gerrard, Lampard, Scholes, Terry, Rooney, Ferdinand, Neville, Ashley Cole, Carragher, and Owen with their big reputations, you have to call them a golden generation.

Though that golden generation came and failed on the biggest stages, this younger and relatively unknown team have performed better than they did at the World Cup.

You have to call them a golden generation

So are we about to witness another golden generation of English footballers who are going to dominate the international stage? Well, it is hard to argue when you have young players like Kane, Alli, Sterling, Stones, Joe Gomez, Walker, Trippier, Henderson, and Maguire who are giving performances at the highest level.

Then you have younger players like Trent Alexander, Rashford, Sancho, and Sessegnon who are already regulars for their respective clubs and have been consistently performing well.