The game with Sweden looks set to be the lowest attendance at the new, improved Wembley since it opened in 2007.
And to be frank it was only a matter of time.
The stadium lacks any sort of character and that makes it an almost unplayable atmosphere for the players because they can hear people’s disgruntled whispers when things are not going to plan.
Even the game against Spain lacked something despite the result and I think in order to get the passion back into the fans, the England team need to get back on the tour bus.
When the Three Lions toured the country to footballing Mecca’s like Old Trafford, Anfield and St James’ Park (or the Sports Direct Arena if you like) during the re-development of Wembley the crowd were buzzing with excitement.
They were sell out’s every single game and you could feel the passion seeping though TV screens all over the country.
There is a north-south divide when it comes to the national side, with those north of London feeling cut off with Wembley and the FA headquarters being based there.
The atmosphere at Old Trafford when Becks’ busted the net in added time against Greece back in 2001 was extraordinary and that is what we need to get back to in order to inspire the next generation of Three Lions.
They will not benefit from playing in front of 80,000-strong crowd who seem more concerned about how to beat the rush when they leave the game.
A lot of the passion north of London is being forgotten and wasted when England could do with it more than ever going into a critical year.
Games such as the one against Sweden would be the perfect opportunity to head back up the M1 and get the whole country involved in project England leading into Euro 2012.
I have no issue with competitive games being played at Wembley because that is the main reason it was built.
But friendlies should be moved around the country and the sooner it happens the better.
