In-depth: It's difficult to be enthusiastic about England's perfect Euro 2016 qualification, because the same thing always happens at the big event. Or, will it?
THE BIG STORY
England completed a perfect qualifying campaign on Monday night when they beat Lithuania 3-0 in Vilnius. Ross Barkley and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain found the net whileGiedrius Arlauskis scored an own goal in the straightforward win at the LFF Stadium.
Although England's group was perhaps the easiest, their achievement should not be sniffed at. This is the first time they have qualified for a major tournament with a 100 per cent qualifying record in this format and no other nation went through the qualification campaign without dropping a point.
And after last year's disappointingly early World Cup exit, the achievement of a perfect 10 deserves praise.
WHAT HODGSON SAID
"I did believe the team could go unbeaten," the England manager said. "It was a big goal to set - perhaps too big in some respects - but something in me said they are good players here, and we're not dependent upon 11; if we play well, with focus and continue to try and get better, we could go through unbeaten.
"But qualification was the main thing. I would have been happy with six wins and four draws."
Ross Barkley, centre, opened the scoring for England - PA Sport
SO... CAN ENGLAND SUSTAIN THIS FORM?
Well, the new European Championship format means qualification to the knockout stage is an absolute must for England. No disrespect to the Albanias and Northern Irelands of the qualification process, but if England can win 10 out of 10 in a group containing other 'good, but not championship contenders' sides such as the Swiss and the Slovenians, they will be expected to comfortably escape a group stage where a true 'group of death' will be very difficult to land in.
Whether or not they can avoid a tough last-16 contest could come down to the finals draw in December. What we do know is that some group winners will meet second-placed sides in the first knockout round, while others play teams who squeaked in as well-performing third-placed sides. Some runners-up, meanwhile, play other runners-up. These have already been decided by group, but we'll see where the nations are drawn.
Of course, wherever England end up in the knockout brackets, the big question is: can they finally get the job done if/when they eventually oppose a formidable side? That is the doubt that still looms over Hodgson and his troops. Thirty points from 10 qualifiers is all well and good, but this is the same side who crashed out of the World Cup with just two games played.
Ross Barkley (left) celebrates with Adam Lallana after opening the scoring for England - PA Sport
Yes, this event is not in the South American tropics, but it's not like the nation have a sparking recent record in crunch clashes in this continent, either. Remember when Hodgson took charge initially, for Euro 2012? They were knocked out by Italy on penalties in the quarter-finals.
Whether England get the toughest possible draw or a very comfortable one, it's fair to say that nobody will take them seriously again until they end up facing sides like Germany, Spain and Italy and actually win. Not in friendlies, but at the big event. These sides have all been made to look beatable by lesser nations than England, so it shouldn't be impossible.
In that respect, perhaps it's for the best that England do get a challenging encounter in the group, if possible. That way they can try to do what they failed to do in Brazil and beat threatening opposition. And, if they stumble, they can still potentially squeak through in third and learn from their latest mistakes.
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