In the days of old, bards would write great poems and songs to celebrate the conquests and victories of great men. Today every sports writer in England must be wishing that they could use a plethora of superlatives to describe men who were proud to represent their country and put their bodies on the line for the cause.

Alas, no man stood to the fore in the torrential rain at Wembley Stadium last night. After losing to Argentina in France ’98, there was a solitary scapegoat but in the aftermath of this there are so many people who deserve to shoulder the blame - the coach, the FA and ultimately the players.

The problems surrounding Steve McClaren’s management have been well documented in the press so there is no point in covering well-worn ground. His mission was to qualify for the European Championships. He failed to do so and in the event England finished on the same number of points as Israel.

'The next manager should not be English for the simple fact that there are no Englishmen worthy of filling such a demanding post'

When England lost to Germany in the last game at the old Wembley, Kevin Keegan had the bottle to admit he was not up to the job. McClaren has  embarrassed himself and declared he will not be stepping down. Brian Barwick now has to stand up and sack him. It is the political equivalent of a candidate running for election for a major party and not winning. They step aside, and why? Because they will forever be associated with defeat.

The formation selected for the Croatia game will come under intense scrutiny. Even so, the England players must take a long hard look at themselves. Other than Peter Crouch, not one player enhanced hisreputation on the night. For players who are earning upward of £100k a week, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard must wonder how they were out-fought and out-thought by an opposition midfield that, on paper, should have been a walkover.

It was not just even this one night, though. Russia away, Croatia away, Israel away and Macedonia at home - for the top players to not perform in almost half the qualifying games is just not acceptable. Gerrard was captain last night in the absence of John Terry and the notion that performance reflects leadership has never been more apt. In 2001 David Beckham, in a similar position, saw England through almost on his own. Gerrard himself in Istanbul did the same yet  last night he hid - there was no leadership or communication on the field.