WORLD CUP 2010 QUALIFYING GROUP SIX
Andorra v England Venue: Olympic Stadium, Barcelona Date: Saturday, 6 September Kick-off: 1900 BST Coverage: Live on Setanta Sports 1 and BBC Radio 5 Live on AM, digital and via the BBC Sport website
England captain John Terry says that the players are underperforming because of a lack of confidence.
He will lead his nation in a World Cup qualifier with Andorra in the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona on Saturday.
However, Terry said: "There's a fear of failure, speaking honestly. It's been like that for the last couple of years.
"I don't think we will be able to go out there and completely change it overnight. At club level, the lads feel free and can express themselves."
England return to the stadium where supporters turned on former coach Steve McClaren when they last played there.
The team were booed off at half-time after being goalless following 45 minutes against part-timers Andorra in England's ultimately unsuccessful European Championship qualifying campaign.
The mood among fans remained hostile when England failed to reach Euro 2008.
Ahead of their opening World Cup qualifier, Terry is hopeful the squad can get the fans back on their side.
"When you come away with your country and look around the dressing room and see the players you're going to be playing with, it should be the best thing," stated the Chelsea defender.
"The confidence should be there. It should be the best thing, but at the minute things just aren't right.
"As captain I do take a lot of pride when the team play and when the fans boo us off the pitch it really hurts deep inside.
"As the game went on against Andorra last time, the booing got worse and it made us go into our shells even more."
Terry is prepared for another frustrating game against Andorra and is hopeful that the fans can show more patience with them.
"We need them behind us, whether it be 30 or 40 minutes at 0-0 - they need to stick with us," added the 27-year-old.
"We'll learn from last time. In the build-up to last time, it was all about whether we would win 4-0 or 5-0, whether it would be six or seven.
"We all expect us to win but we also know it's going to be difficult.
"They'll come out and try to make it very physical again for us, so we may need an early goal to knock them back a little bit and force them out because they literally play with 10 men behind the ball."
(BBC)
<< Back
