It's interesting that you chose the 1970's to make your point as I believe that was when the "English desease" was born and English football started to lose ground on the the rest of the world on a technical level. Nations such as Brazil, Holland and Germany started developing skillful players that were comfortable on the ball and that could play in a variety of positions that were interchangeable. England stuck rigidly to the 442 that was new (and successful) in 1966 but was superceeded by "total football" and the "sweeper system" by the 1970s. There was a golden generation of talented, creative, flair players that emerged in England in the 1970s, Rodney Marsh, Stan Bowles, Alan Hudson, Peter Osgood, Tony Currie, Frank Worthington to name a few, all were comfortable on the ball with great technique, but all were criminally overlooked by the National team. Firstly, they couldn't fit into Sir Alf Ramsay's rigid formations and were too flamboyant and maverick for Don Revie's "family" style of management. This has carried on since then with Matt LeTissier, who would've had 50 plus caps anywhere else in Europe being overlooked by the likes of David Batty and Carlton Palmer. Until we stop with the obsessive rigid formations and start encouraging kids to express themselves and concentrate purely on technique from an early age then we will always be behind the major football nations.
It's being comfortable on the ball that English players have suffered from for years and years - I've always admired how European teams play themselves out of trouble - particularly at the back - you rarely, if ever, see Italian/Dutch/German defenders hoof a ball out of defence when they are closed down. It's one reason I've really enjoyed watching Swansea over the last few years - they play football all over the pitch. If our coaching at a young level can start to instill the passing and moving game and not being afraid of making the odd error Engaknd as a national team may move forward.
