KEEP the engines on the plane running, we’ll be out of here soon. That pretty much summed up the thoughts of the experts who analysed England ‘s fate in the draw for next year’s World Cup finals in Brazil.

Italy, Uruguay and Costa Rica are, as everyone must surely be aware, England’s group opponents and the excuses started to flow within seconds of Sir Geoff Hurst dispoving conspiracy theories about fixed draws and hot balls by putting Roy Hodgson‘s men into Group D..

Too hot and humid in Manaus in the Amazon rain forests for the game with Italy; Uruguay, they’ve got Luis that there Suarez; Costa Rica - they’ll be good but we will come up with excuses when we have thought some up.

You could see the doom merchants going into overdrive.

The same people already fearing England’s plight are the ones who insists that the Premier League is the ‘greatest league in the world’ so surely the Three Lions should have no worries…or maybe not.

It’s a long time since England sat on top of the football world. Perhaps the reality is starting to hit home that the so-called golden generation of English football is actually iron pyrite rather than 24-carat.

* There was also much tutting and mutterings of ‘disgrace’ when it emerged that the England v Italy game would not kick off until 2am UK time.

‘You can’t make US play then,’ was the cry ‘Pubs will have to stay open all night‘…and Fifa listened and changed the time to 11pm UK time.

There seemed to be a lot of fuss over nothing. The people who want to watch the game will stay up, those who don’t will go to bed.

And if you think one game is bad, try being a cricket fan who wants to watch England’s toils in Australia…you never see daylight.