Euro 2004: England's footballers will learn tomorrow who they are to face at Euro 2004, though they are already wary of the increased expectation weighing heavy on their shoulders after their rugby union counterparts' World Cup success.
Sven-Goran Eriksson will attend the draw tomorrow morning in Lisbon, where his side have been included in the second pot of seeds and are certain to meet one from the holders France, hosts Portugal, the Czech Republic or his compatriots Sweden in the group stage. In the wake of England's 20-17 triumph over Australia he is under pressure to emulate Clive Woodward's heady success.
"I think the nation will now be expecting the football team to go and do just as well in the summer," admitted Steven Gerrard, who watched the World Cup winners return from Australia with something approaching envy last week. "I don't think anyone will settle for anything less than us getting to the final.
"You watch those scenes and you do dream a little bit and think: 'I hope that can be me in the future.' Not just in Euro 2004, but in the next World Cup finals as well. Seeing those boys win a major trophy and win a final, and witnessing the reaction of the fans back home, it would be nice to follow in their footsteps, but we have a lot to live up to."
Gerrard, whose sole experience of a major finals was a substitute's appearance in the 1-0 victory over Germany at Euro 2000, watched the rugby final alongside his England colleague Danny Murphy in Liverpool's hotel before the goalless draw at Middlesbrough. The 23-year-old midfielder, who has never tasted defeat in a senior international fixture, admitted there is much he and his team-mates can learn from the rugby union side's success.
"I think there was a lot we can take from the England boys as regards their team spirit, togetherness and will to win," he said. "I am sure if England's footballers take that into the summer then that will help us."
Aside from being guaranteed one of an imposing quartet from the first pot, England could also be joined by Holland, conquerors of Scotland in the play-offs but ranked among the third tier of seeds, at the group stage.
A pool consisting of France, Holland, England and Bulgaria appears the worst-case scenario. Croatia, Latvia and Sweden remain a far more appetising prospect, even if the 1-1 World Cup draw in Saitama stretched England's winless run against the Swedes to 10 matches, stretching back 35 years.
The draw will divide the 16 qualifiers into four groups of four teams, each containing a top seed, second seed, third seed and fourth seed. France are the team to avoid among the top seeds and Holland among the third seeds while all the second seeds look strong.
Euro 2004 Championships seedings:
Pot A - Portugal, France, Sweden and Czech Republic.
Pot B - Spain, Italy, England and Germany.
Pot C - Holland, Croatia, Denmark and Russia.
Pot D - Bulgaria, Latvia, Greece and Switzerland.
