Southgate and young lions pride of a nation

There’s been a hint of a smile on a lot of faces this week.

The morning commute seemed a little easier come Wednesday, motorists that little bit more patient. Why? Because England’s rocky relationship with World Cup football has finally found calmer waters.

Social media is populated with our local town crammed with fans celebrating, even a 1-0 loss to Belgium couldn’t dampen our spirits. This is what football can do.

Two weeks ago Russia was whipped up into an almost Cold War frenzy, fears over fan violence and intolerance were the orders of the day. Since then there’s been little to report of violence, and the only chill we can feel is the cool heads of this young England side.

It’s already been a successful tournament, a record win against Panama, winning a knock-out game for the first time since 2006 and the small matter of coming out on top in a penalty shoot out. Not bad is it?

What makes it better is off the pitch we’re seeing friendly faces, both at home and abroad. There are no gammonfaced moaners shouting on the streets, instead there are roaring fans watching England win, as always, the hard way. Emotions are only going to grow, a Saturday afternoon quarter final means England fans will be shouting even louder in pubs, living rooms and on the country’s streets. Already we’ve seen great videos of fans packing out Maidstone and other towns.

It may cause a little disruption, but there’s no threat to anyone, it’s a World Cup party and no one wants it to end.Come Saturday, let’s stay positive no matter what and keep an eye on the post, because football might just be coming home.