 At the finals in Belgium and the Netherlands, a lacklustre England failed to get beyond the group stage, losing to both Portugal and Romania after leading in each game.Shearer had announced before the tournament of his intention to retire from international football after the finals.On 7 October 2000, shortly after losing the opening World Cup qualifier to Germany in the last game at Wembley before its redevelopment, Keegan resigned, citing that he was "a little bit short for what is required of this job".