Wilshere and Gerrard should carry England's midfield hopes in eastern Europe

BBC Sport takes a closer look at the 16 teams who will contest the 2012 European Championship in Poland and Ukraine. Spain are the defending champions. Can England steal their crown?

JONATHAN PEARCE'S VERDICT

"Perhaps England's best hope lies in the fact that, for the first time in quite a while, expectation levels are so low for a major tournament.

"The South Africa demons have not been exorcised for many fans or some players and, overall, England haven't done well at the Euros. Luck hasn't always been with them. But they've also underperformed shabbily.

"A lot will depend on whether Fabio Capello goes for youth in preparation for the World Cup 2014 campaign or - again - plumps for tried, tested, ageing and fading legs. Wayne Rooney's suspension for the first two group matches will bite deeply into hopes, but England need him. He is one of the few players who can dominate the latter stages of a tournament.

"This will be Capello's swansong, his last chance to prove he hasn't been an expensive failure, and the youngsters can deliver. England expect far better than South Africa 2010, but I'm afraid I can't see them winning the tournament for the first time."

STAR MAN

After more than a decade as one of the world's best midfielders, can Liverpool's Steven Gerrard haul England's underachievers to the heights which were expected of them at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa?

One of the so-called 'Golden Generation' upon whom the lights are starting to fade, at least at international level, much will rest on inspirational Gerrard initially - if fully fit - in the absence of his fellow Liverpudlian Wayne Rooney, who is banned for the first two group games.

The true measure of Jack Wilshere's precocious talent, and class, came when the 19-year-old produced a superbly poised performance in Arsenal's exhilarating 2-1 first leg win in a Champions League last-16 tie against Barcelona in February. He left the field clutching the shirts of Xavi and Andres Iniesta, having stood toe-to-toe with two of the world's best. Could be England's key player if he's on form.

They have not completed a match against each other for 20 years now because a 1995 friendly at Lansdowne Road was abandoned after 27 minutes due to crowd violence. But they may well meet in a Euro 2012 warm-up, with both associations keen. England lost 1-0 against the Irish at Euro 88 in Germany, and then drew with them 1-1 at the World Cup in Italy two years later. Both were group games.

Manchester United's Wayne Rooney swatted aside a frenzy of allegations over his private life to spark England to a convincing 3-1 victory in Switzerland as Fabio Capello's team made it a maximum six points from their first two Euro 2012 qualifiers, paving the way for their relatively smooth progress as eventual group G winners. Rooney's goal was his first for England in a year and Manchester City's Adam Johnson showed the options available on the bench, excelling as a substitute after Theo Walcott was stretchered off by adding a superbly-taken second goal in the 69th minute in Basle.

He's won European Cups with a swashbuckling AC Milan side, and ground out a last-dash Spanish League triumph with Real Madrid, but Fabio Capello is largely unloved by his adopted nation. After initially struggling to speak to media because of a poor grasp of English, the Italian still frustrates the press with his inability to truly inspire his players. Set to leave once Euro 2012 is done and dusted.

The 1966 World Cup winners came third two years later in Italy, beaten 1-0 in the semi-finals by Yugoslavia - England's best-ever Euro showing. They qualified just once for the tournament between then and 1988, and miserably failed to qualify last time around in 2008. Euro 96 - when 'Football Came Home' - saw Terry Venables' side reach the semi-finals, only to be knocked out by Germany.

The year is ingrained in most English brains: 1966. Bobby Moore lifted the World Cup. It's still the benchmark, and still the video reel plays out heady memories of Nobby Stiles jigging over the Wembley turf.

Prince William's marriage to Kate Middleton, now the Duchess of Cambridge, put English royalty back into the limelight. Visitors flock to London from around the world to peer at the Windsor family haunts.

Forget traditional industries. Music is what England generally does best. Pioneering pop and rock mega-groups The Beatles and The Rolling Stones both hail from its shores, while 1980s bands like The Smiths are still listened to around the globe. And mainstream X Factor-style hits fly off the writing and performance conveyor belt.

Written by Chris Whyatt.