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John Barnes: ‘England fans must lower expectations’

John Barnes: ‘England can’t play like Spain’
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John Barnes believes that England fans must be "realistic" in terms of expectations.

Former England and Liverpool player John Barnes believes that the national side cannot be compared to Spain and fans need to be “realistic” in their expectations.

England cruised to a 3-0 win in Bulgaria but failed to impress in their 1-0 victory over Wales at Wembley.

The former midfielder insists that England fans should not aim too high despite England’s number four ranking in the world’s national teams.

“I think our expectations have to be lowered,” Barnes told talkSPORT. “We saw from the World Cup that we’re not the best in the world, regardless of our world ranking.

“So let’s be realistic in what we expect. England are a good side but we need to keep our feet on the ground. Let’s not try and play like Spain because we can’t, so let’s play to our strengths.”

The Three Lions continue their Euro 2012 qualifiers with a trip to Montenegro next month on October 7.

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