Success on the field begins with what’s on in the mind

Why have so many good Dutch sides failed to deliver while you can just about guarantee Italy reaching the knockout phase?

It is not always thus, but the above scenarios happen far too regularly for it to be coincidence.

In these days of cross-border footballers there are no secrets of tactics or technique, while the fitness levels should be broadly similar — they nearly all train and play alongside and against each other in the modern game’s multinational leagues.

The difference is mentality.

Anyone selected to represent Germany in a major tournament would have been brought up seeing the country excel, particularly in the European Championship where they have reached five of the last eight finals.

Consequently, when Germany arrive, whatever their form, they expect to do well. The odd bad result or poor performance does not force knee-jerk reactions as the players have come to believe in their right to be battling it out in semi-finals and finals.

England have the opposite problem. A final is virgin territory — none of the current squad were born when their compatriots reached and won their only major final, the 1966 World Cup on home soil. A succession of home-grown coaches failed to break the cycle so the FA looked overseas and now hopes Swede Sven-Goran Eriksson, free of the historical baggage, will be able to convince the current crop of players that their destiny is not to go out bravely in a penalty shootout.

Greece went down the same route and have enjoyed immediate success as German Otto Rehhagel has led them into their first quarter-final. ‘‘We are not going to Portugal as tourists’’, the Bundesliga veteran promised before the tournament, instilling a new belief in his squad that was evident from the first minute of their opening victory over Portugal.

Spain might have to think about a similarly radical move as their perennial under-achievement, which continued with Sunday’s group stage exit, is now burned so deep into the national psyche as to be indelible.

How many players from the Danish or Swedish squads would make Spain’s first XI on paper? Yet those two small Scandinavian countries consistently punch above their weight in tournaments.

Peter Schmeichel, goalkeeper in the Denmark side that upset the odds to win the 1992 European Championship, says it is a happy atmosphere and lack of pressure that helps forge a formidable team spirit. The Danish FA always arranges a hotel near to the players for family members and life in a tournament is designed to be relaxed and happy.

‘‘When you are picked for Denmark, your family is picked too’’, Schmeichel said, and there is no doubt that a harmonious squad is more likely to succeed than one full of in-fighting. Just ask the Dutch.

Hardly a tournament goes by without a Dutch player publicly complaining about selection or tactical issues, while expelling a disruptive influence has also become par for the course with Russia.

Bulgaria coach Plamen Markov said it was ‘‘normal’’ that his team should go out in the first round as group rivals Italy, Sweden and Denmark were better sides.

Nobody was thinking that way 10 years ago when the Bulgarians shocked Germany to reach the World Cup semi-finals but the negativity has returned to a country shamed by the footballing ambition of old rivals Greece.

After tumbling out of the tournament following a meek 2-0 defeat by Denmark, instead of being upset that his side failed to match the ambition shown in the 5-0 drubbing by Sweden, Markov complained that his players had disobeyed instructions and been too positive. (Reuters)