In any successful organization, forward planning is essential. The present quickly becomes the future so those at the sharp end of the business would constantly be formulating ideas and strategies for the next step.

The impression is that the Football Association believed England would win Euro 2016 or at least reach the semifinals, and eventually that would have seen Roy Hodgson rightly offered a new contract. It probably also believes in the tooth fairy and that the moon is made of green cheese.

England's humiliation at the hands of Iceland, which prompted Hodgson to jump before he was pushed, may have been a surprise even by England standards, but its early exit from a major finals is par for the course. The only shock is that it wasn't after a penalty shootout.