Yet again the country's attention turns to the moral and sporting dilemma that is the enigma of Wayne Rooney. Now that his ban has been reduced by UEFA to two matches, it would appear he is a shoe-in for the final 25 man squad.
Rooney is lucky in more ways than one as now there will be a huge clamour for him to be included, especially as England seem to have been drawn into an eminently winnable group at Euro 2012. How we've all heard that before. He will miss the opening games against Sweden and France, returning for the fixture in Donetsk against the joint hosts.
So, is the scene set for a dashing young hero to ride into Eastern Europe and slay his way through the opposition, taking us to the final or better? Fact is a lot more sober than fiction. Every tournament there's a time when fans forget that despair is sometimes an easier emotion to deal with than forlorn hope, where football is concerned.
Win our group and we'll face Italy, Ireland or Croatia. Could Rooney be the difference against the best of those 3 teams? Possibly. Can he be trusted to deliver? Probably not. Finish second and we'll play Spain. I'm aware we beat them recently (despite being totally outplayed), but a competitive game is different. It's safe to assume that even with 11 Wayne Rooney's (a horrid thought), Capello's men would be worlds apart from the current World and European Champions. This is Spain's once in a generation moment, I must have missed ours, but that's a whole new topic.
Rooney has been called a big game player, but he has blown hot and cold since being catapulted into his first cap as a teenager. The general consensus of those in the know is that Rooney's reduced suspension will not now preclude his inclusion in the squad. However, his form has been in decline since the sending off in Montenegro and arrest of his father, mirroring Manchester United's equally inconsistent period.
Perhaps some would accuse me of schadenfreude, but the boxer's son from Croxteth is perhaps proof beyond doubt in the existence of karma. He is a player clearly affected by events off the pitch, and as the manager, Fabio Capello has to decide whether the country can rely on Rooney's mind to be focussed and clear when the time comes to perform.
If Capello takes four strikers (as he surely will if only playing one up top), Darren Bent, Jermaine Defoe and the excellent Daniel Sturridge would perhaps be the pick of the current crop. Andy Carroll, Peter Crouch and Bobby Zamora seem to very much on the periphery, with Carroll in particular suffering a meteoric fall from grace after being hailed as our new hero only 12 months ago. From this trio, a fully fit and functioning Bobby Zamora would offer something different and a solid option should Capello revert back to his preferred 4-4-2.
Capello could see it as a straight fight out between Manchester United colleagues Rooney and Danny Welbeck. Rooney hasn't scored in the league since September, whilst Welbeck has scored just once in the Premier League since the crushing victory of Arsenal in August. Neither are setting the world alight. Therefore it's probably form that will determine whether Rooney has gotten away with it again, and will determine who will have the chance to be a hero for the Three Lions. Let's just hope Fabio steers it so that someone has this chance.