It is their inability to hold on to their leads that is cause for concern.
The New Paper's football analyst Tohari Paijan already pointed this out during the group stage of the Euro Under-21 Championship.
And this weakness was evident again during yesterday morning's (Singapore time) semi-final clash between England and Sweden, when Stuart Pearce's charges allowed a 3-0 lead to completely dissolve in the second period.
The match eventually ended 3-3 after extra-time, and England won the subsequent penalty shoot-out.
Said Tohari: 'They just don't know how to protect their lead.
'In the first game against Finland, they allowed their opponents to equalise.
'Then, against Sweden, they allowed the hosts to come back from three goals down. When you lose a three-goal advantage, something is very wrong.
'It shouldn't be about finding the fourth goal at that point. The focus should be on keeping possession and limiting Sweden's chances.
'It shows a lack of mental strength.
'But England failed to do that and nearly paid the price.'
It's also ironic how the Manchester City connection in defence, which was supposed to be one of their strengths, turned out to be their major weakness.
The pairing of Nedum Onuoha and Micah Richards in central defence, and the presence of Joe Hart in goal, were initially expected to give the strikers a tough time in the tournament.
Fault
Said Tohari: 'The Man City triangle was not as formidable as touted to be.
'Richards was at fault for not marking Marcus Berg when he scored the first goal.
'Then, Onuoha conceded a free-kick in a dangerous area, from which Ola Toivonen scored the second goal.
'Onuoha was again dreaming when Berg pounced on the equaliser.
'They are susceptible to lapses of concentration during matches.
'The way England played was disappointing. They seemed to forget that football is a game of two halves.'
That England managed to eventually win the match was down to a huge slice of fortune.
Sweden had plenty of chances to seal the game after clawing back to 3-3.
England's problems multiplied when Fraizer Campbell was sent off during the first period of extra-time.
Alas, the fourth goal eluded Sweden, and Tohari couldn't help but feel sympathetic towards the Swedes.
He said: 'Sweden deserved to win the game for showing the guts to take the game to England.
'When it comes down to penalties, it's mostly about luck.'
Yet, England's performance is not all negative, according to Tohari.
For one, their ability to score from set-plays stood out once again. On all three occasions, England took advantage of Sweden's indecisiveness at defending such situations.
Also, England showed that they are not all that useless from the spot.
He said: 'Two years ago, they lost out on a place in the final after losing a marathon penalty shoot-out to Holland.
'This time, they managed to hold their nerves to reach the final.
But Tohari cautioned: 'England still have plenty of work to do if they want to win the final.'
How the match went
1st minute: GOAL! Martin Cranie's shot whizzes past a packed defence, off the leg of a defender on the line, and into the back of the net.
23rd: Gabriel Agbonlahor receives his second yellow card of the tournament for elbowing his marker. Misses next match.
27th: GOAL! Nedum Onuoha takes advantage of the space in the penalty box, controlling a corner kick before turning to ram in England's second goal.
38th: GOAL! Sweden are desperately unlucky as Mattias Bjarsmyr clears a Lee Cattermole flick past his own goalkeeper.
68th: GOAL! The Sweden fightback commences when Marcus Berg turns in an excellent cross.
75th: GOAL! From just outside the penalty box, Ola Toivonen curls a free-kick beyond the reach of Joe Hart.
81st: GOAL! Sweden equalise. Robin Soder's return at the far post is fired into the roof of the net by Berg.
84th: Fraizer Campbell barges into the goalkeeper Johan Dahlin. Yellow card.
90th: End of normal time. England 3 Sweden 3.
104th: Campbell (below) lunges wildly at Mikael Lustig. Second yellow card and off he goes. He will miss the final.
111th: Berg's looping header hits the crossbar.
120th: Extra time ends 3-3.
England win the penalty shoot-out 5-4. But goalkeeper Joe Hart receives a yellow card for gamesmanship just before Mikael Lustig steps up to take Sweden's fourth penalty. He, too, will miss the final.
