The sheer gaiety of England’s unexpected success at the World Cup in Russia was bewitching. In the nine days since Gareth Southgate’s men won a penalty shootout against Colombia, going on to beat Sweden 2-0, it even felt as if the “Football’s coming home” dream of the 1996 pop anthem might actually come true. What a joy that would have been: England in the final on Sunday. Instead they lost to Croatia in the semi-final and the flag-waving euphoria is over, at least for now. “It just hurts” was captain Harry Kane’s comment, while Mr Southgate indicated that the pain would last some time. Moving on quickly is unwise, he said: “You have to suffer the result a little bit.”

England have been bad losers in the past, and not just in the sense of being graceless. The whole national set-up has appeared unable to learn from failure, with its atrocious record on penalty shootouts – now corrected by Mr Southgate – the most glaring example. After the Sweden game, the manager spoke of his pride in the team’s resilience and togetherness. Crushing disappointment is sure to test both. Fans will hope the experience makes them stronger – but not before a last hurrah in the third place play-off against Belgium on Saturday. Come on, England!