The history books will show that Portugal knocked England out of Germany 2006. But the killer blow came not from the men in red but England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson.

It was Eriksson who took just four strikers to Germany – two injured, one novice. It was the manager who tried a different formation for each game.

Rooney played the fool, but he was set up to fail by Eriksson, the most highly paid manager in England’s history.

Forget any idea that Scholari is a genious: he didn’t need to be to outwit Sven.

Portugal were hugely unimpressive. They played for free kicks, and showed only occasional glimpses of magic. The two teams gave the impression of two bald men fighting for a comb.

England were the least impressive of all the quarter-finalists, which speaks volumes for their coach’s inability to make anything of the talent at his disposal. Their early exit is a relief: we’ll no longer have to put up with the glacial Sven, who has shown far more passion for bed-hopping and money-grabbing than for doing the job for which he has been so dramatically rewarded.