And so the collective nation of England breathes a giant sigh of relief.

As a native of England, and devotee of every World Cup since 1982, I feel relieved that for once the signs are pointing to England having some luck on their side this time round. But before we get ahead of ourselves and proclaim Wayne Rooney as the second coming, there are some things that need to be pointed out.

Four years ago the English team faced a similar predicament with now captain David Beckham, and when he was announced as available from the opening game it appeared as though the English team was poised to make a concerted run at the title. We all know how that one turned out, finishing second to, uh-oh, Sweden in the first round before being eliminated by Brazil in the quarterfinals.

Rooney is a better player than Beckham was then and has more talent than anyone who will start the opening game against Paraguay for England, but to rest the entire tournament on one player’s shoulders is nothing short of ridiculous. Coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has been right to try and focus attention on the rest of the team, to little avail with the English media, understanding that it is going to take a concerted effort from the whole team if England is to win its second World Cup. Hopefully the focus can now switch to Saturday’s important opener rather than what some are calling the ‘Blessed Metatarsal’ and it’s recovery.