English FA releases DNA blueprint for future success

LONDON - The English Football Association (FA) has released a DNA report aimed at creating a blueprint for a "world-class" method of achieving long-term "winning England teams", the governing body said on Thursday.

"The England DNA is the start point for the creation of a world-class approach to elite player development leading to winning England teams," the FA said in a statement on its website (www.thefa.com).

"The framework consists of five elements: Who we are, how we play, the future England player, how we coach and how we support."

The detailed guideline tackles a wide range of elements of off-field and on-field development of players at every level within the English system. Players are expected to become familiar with the England DNA, respect past players and traditions and behave in a socially responsible way.

England players should also leave the game in a better state for those who follow and establish personal and individual meanings for the national badge and anthem. The report hopes the implementation of such requirements will lead to on-field improvement such as the ability to "intelligently dominate possession" and "regain possession intelligently and as early and as efficiently as possible".

"There's two or three key things to this. One is for us to have a clear identity in how we want our players and our teams to play," the FA's director of elite development Dan Ashworth told Sky Sports.

"St George's Park (England's training facility) has given us the opportunity to bring everyone to one home so all our coaches can work out of one central training ground.

"The third and final thing is the collaboration and joining up with the clubs. There is some fantastic work going on. All three of those things give me great hope and positivity that our teams will improve and the number of English players will improve."

England, knocked out in the first round of this year's World Cup, have won the tournament only once, in 1966, and have failed to reach the semi-finals since 1990.

"England winning would benefit everybody from grassroots right through to Premier League and certainly to the national teams. We've all got a passion," Ashworth added.

(Reporting by Tom Hayward, editing by Ed Osmond)