17 years on and yet another defeat in Spain

CAN anyone explain to me how the Premier League's financial dominance over La Liga and the fact that the world's top players want to come over here has translated onto the national scene?

Because tonight it was hit and hope football against probing, patient, succulent passing.

That's no goals against Spain in three matches.

"A reality check", said the ITV commentator. You can say that again.

"No disgrace in losing to one so technically capable", said David Pleat.

But my question is why aren't we? How long have do our Academies - flush with TV cash- continue to hone the skills of Africans, Americans, Scandinavians, Australians and so forth before someone calls for change?

England created zip. Gabby Agbonlahor had nothing to latch onto.

Spain were patient and left us looking bedraggled. The gulf in class was there for all to see.

I do not blame the coach Fabio Capello.

But we get so caught up in the hype of our 100mph Premier League, where every run is amazing, every flick, awesome, every back-heel nonchalant, every tackle hearty and every spot of diving, kicking, spitting, shouting, elbowing is simply horseplay, and every hoof up the middle of the park is simply playing to your strengths that we forget that the league was set up 17 years ago to aid the national team.

I still ask: is the team of Terry, Ferdinand, James, A Cole, Lampard etc better than 17 years ago when the Premier League was formed?

Guess what? England's first game following the formation of the Premier League was a 1-0 defeat in Spain in September 1992.

An 11th-minute strike by Gregorio Fonseca saw England slump.

Manager Graham Taylor was already the butt of every media headline following the miserable show in the European Championships.

It woud get worse for Taylor soon after. And that night he did little for his relationship with the tabloids. Not in his award of a first cap to Manchester United midfielder Paul Ince, he would throw controversial caps to Manchester City forward David White and QPR full-back David Bardsley. Brian Deane also came on to replace Andy Sinton.

But that much-maligned England team would give the current crop a mighty game. Why? Because they had four or five world class players.

And this, unbelievably, was in the days before mega money entered the sport and before the Premier League promised to hand us back the World Cup.

The England team of 17 years ago: Chris Woods, Lee Dixon, Stuart Pearce, Paul Ince, Des Walker, Mark Wright, David White, David Platt , Nigel Clough , Alan Shearer, and Andy Sinton. The subs: David Bardsley, Carlton Palmer, Paul Merson and Brian Deane.

The world class players: Shearer, Pearce, Walker, Ince and Platt. The 'so sos': Woods, Dixon, Wright and Clough. The rest? Well, best forgotten.

But can anyone expolain quite what Carlton Cole is doing in an England shirt? That just defies belief.

Still, from a Villa perspective it was a night where Martin O'Neill will have come away mightily relieved.

James Milner and Ashley Young didn't even come off the pitchside couch, Gareth Barry - suspended at Everton this Sunday, I know - and Emile Heskey got 45 minutes and Agbonlahor 75.

It could have been so much worse ahead of what promises to be a Cup cracker.