Some say there’s tremendous pressure while others say the first day on the job could have been a lot worse for Steve McClaren, the new England coach. Like if they won it all in Germany, for example. Instead, the former Middlesbrough manager’s task will be a more psychological one, says the Telegraph’s Alan Smith. “Following the debacle in Germany, apathy rules among a large section of England supporters. Expectation levels in the street have plummeted from an all-time high to the kind of dispiriting levels last seen during Kevin Keegan’s final days.” For those unfamiliar with Kevin Keegan’s final days, the England manager during Euro 2000 started the tourney with the usual favorite’s peg, only to bow out in the first round after a pair of toothless 3-2 losses to Portugal and Romania. Adds Smith: “After prattling on incessantly for the past few years about the golden generation, about 2006 being ‘our time’, we can now get back to some form of reality. England just about belong in the world’s top eight teams but as for taking things further, that prospect still seems well out of reach.” Which means that it will take a string of excellent performances at the least before English fans can feel excited about its prospects for 2008. Among the questions facing McClaren: Who’s the new captain? Should he drop David Beckham? Frank Lampard? What kind of system should he deploy? By and large the press has lauded the expected appointment of Terry Venables as McClaren’s assistant. England hasn’t done as well in a major competition since Venables brought them to the semi-finals of Euro ’96. As bad as it was for the supporters, Smith points out that the World Cup must have taken a considerable toll on a group of players who truly believed this could be their year. McClaren and staff will have to work hard to reinstate that belief after what was, reflectively, a listless performance in Germany. Euro 2008 qualifying already begins next month.