It is claimed that the French philosopher Albert Camus once said that “what I’ve learned about morality I’ve learned from football”.

The actual quotation is a little more complex. Camus, who played in goal for an Algerian team called RUA, said: “After many years during which I saw many things, what I know most surely about morality and the duty of man I owe to sport and learned it in the RUA.”

The broad message holds good: much can be learned about character and life from the conduct of football. And the story of the England team in the current Euro 2016 championships illustrates that.