The biennial hype-train that surrounds the England national team ahead of any major tournament departed from Berlin on Saturday, following the 3-2 win over Germany by Roy Hodgson's men.
The starting XI included six members that had 10 caps or fewer, with another two players with single-figure appearances coming off the bench. It was a team selection and performance, especially after coming back from two goals down, to give the media enough ammunition to fire hope and expectation into the hearts of England fans. The question is whether the same writers will be re-loading with a different kind of ammo come June, ready to shoot the team and manager with vitriol should failure ensue in France...
Depending on what you read following the victory in the German capital, you could have been forgiven for thinking that England had already won the Euros. The appalling showing at the last World Cup two years ago was but a distant memory as the new wave of players rallied to record a memorable win, propelled by the three goal scorers; Eric Dier, Jamie Vardy and Harry Kane, who have just 20 caps between them.
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Since the failure to get out of the group stage in Brazil, England have lost just two of the 18 games in that 22-month period, both of which were friendlies. They qualified for Euro 2016 with maximum points, after 10 wins from 10 games, the only team of the 24 heading to the tournament to do so.
The reaction following that 3-2 win in Berlin was not just from the media, but also the bookmakers, who cut the odds on England winning the Euros from 12/1 in to 8/1 – with just France, Germany and Spain ahead of them in the latest betting.
Those odds were eased a little on Tuesday night, after the hype-train was brought to a halt, as England suffered the second of those two defeats since the World Cup at the hands of the Netherlands at Wembley. Hodgson made eight changes to the XI that started against Germany and it wasn't long before excitement levels picked up where they left off on Saturday, sending social media into meltdown as Jamie Vardy made it two goals in two games to give England a 1-0 lead at the break.
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However, six substitutions in the second half illustrated that this was very much an experimental fixture in the eyes of Hodgson, for which the ultimate price was paid as a Vincent Janssen penalty squared the game up, before PSV Eindhoven's Luciano Narsingh scored the winning goal for Holland with 14 minutes remaining, after which England never looked interested. With seven players from Leicester, Tottenham and Arsenal left on the pitch as time expired, you cannot blame any of them should they have had one eye on the title race resuming this weekend.
Some bookmakers eased England back out to 9/1 to end their 50-year wait for an international trophy following Tuesday's defeat, but the overwhelming consensus from fans, media and the odds compilers suggest that there are a lot more positives than negatives to be taken from the 180 minutes of friendly action over the Easter break.
Without wanting to fuel the furnace of the hype-train as it gains momentum en route to France, it is not without good reason that England are the fourth favourites to win the tournament. The 9/1 will already take into account the deluge of patriotic pounds that will be set to pour between now and the first game - against Russia in Marseille on June 11 - but there is plenty going in England's favour as kickoff approaches.
The new 24-team format of the tournament will see only eight teams leave the competition after the group stage, as the European Championships sees a round of 16 for the first time in its 56-year history. The top two in each of the six groups of four will automatically qualify for the knockout stage, together with the four best third-place finishers.
As such, England would have to suffer its worst ever tournament not to progress to the last 16. However, given the evidence since that shambolic World Cup display, Wales, Russia and Slovakia shouldn't pose too much threat in England progressing from Group B. If they can finish top of the group, Hodgson's men would be well positioned to avoid the so-called 'big guns' - France, Spain and Germany, who are expected to win their respective groups, until the semi-finals.
The path looks favourable, the form looks good, and for the first time in years, there are arguments about the starting XI. Especially up front, where debate is already heating up about the squad selection and who will start - Harry Kane, Wayne Rooney, Jamie Vardy, Daniel Sturridge and Danny Welbeck all divide opinion but the depth is the best in years.
It could be that the hype-train derails in the manner that England fans have become accustomed to at past tournaments down the years. However, it has certainly picked up speed in the past week and for the first time in years there are fewer obstructions on the line, leaving just one question: after 50 years on the platform, can it reach its destination?
