Former England midfielder Sir Trevor Brooking has branded the 2018 World Cup “a massive success”.
This summer’s competition drew to a close on Sunday afternoon, with France landing the trophy courtesy of a 4-2 win over surprise finalists Croatia in Moscow.
There were some concerns surrounding some of the logistics ahead of the tournament, but Brooking has paid tribute to Russia for their hosting skills.
“I wasn’t expecting the surprises and the shocks of this World Cup. You couldn’t predict any game. If I had watched a film with this script I would have said it was a bit far-fetched,” Brooking told BBC Sport.
“Everyone has been relaxed and enjoyed being in Russia. The tournament has been a massive success. We have had a tournament that everyone has been talking about and that is great.”
England managed to reach the semi-finals of a World Cup for the first time in 28 years, but lost 2-1 to Croatia in the final four last week, before suffering a 2-0 loss to Belgium in the third-place playoff on Saturday afternoon.