Simon Kuper writes about the angst sweeping English fans after the Algeria draw:
” Football supporters should revise their expectations. Here’s how to look at it: plucky England held the mighty US and nearly beat Algeria. Moreover, it could be worse – look at France.”
In other words, the rest of the world is catching up to England and Western Europe.
Kuper also says that England’s performances are an act of randomness with no discernible pattern.
Trying to discover some sort of method to these results is futile and counterproductive. What remains constant is the pressure of expectation which can cause good teams to underperform.