World Cup

Jamie Redknapp: 'England's exit too easily accepted'

By Simon Sinclair, Reporter | 23 June 2014

Jamie Redknapp believes that it is embarrassing that England's exit from the World Cup at the group stage has been so easily accepted across the country.

Jamie Redknapp has expressed his belief that there has been too much acceptance to England's group-stage exit at the World Cup.

Roy Hodgson's side crashed out of the tournament following defeats to Italy and Uruguay in their first two matches in Brazil, and Redknapp is adamant that the failure should not be as readily accepted as it has been across the country.

Redknapp wrote in his column in the Daily Mail: "There is too much acceptance, too much tolerance, there are too many people shrugging their shoulders. They seem to be saying: England are out, but we didn't expect much from them anyway.

"Why not? Are we all happy to write off England, out after eight days, and go on holiday thinking, 'There's only two months to the start of the Premier League?' Has the national team fallen so far in our hopes and expectations? That's embarrassing.

"Have England become the equivalent of Australia or South Korea — a country just happy to be here? Home before the bit with the penalty shootouts."

England exited the World Cup at the group stage for the first time since 1958.