Fabio Capello heads into the sunset without being able to finish what he started.
The Italian will never lead England into a major tournament again, leaving before he had the opportunity in Poland and Ukraine to get right what went so badly wrong in South Africa.
But it has not been all bad.
Here, we looks at the best and worst of Capello's time in charge.
BEST
September 2008 - Croatia (A) Won 4-1.
A match approached with an acute sense of trepidation given it was Croatia who booked England out of Euro 2008. England cast those fears aside in Zagreb as Theo Walcott scored a hat-trick in a trilling win.
November 2008 - Germany (A) Won 2-1.
Never mind it was a friendly and most of England's best players were missing, to gain a win over Germany, in Berlin, was a matter for celebration, especially as John Terry scored the winner.
September 2009 - Croatia (H) Won 5-1.
If England were impressive in the first meeting with Slaven Bilic's men, they were even better in the role. Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard both scored twice and Wayne Rooney got the other on a brilliant Wembley night.
September 2010 - Switzerland (A) Won 3-1.
Superb September performance once more, with Adam Johnson particularly impressive. The Manchester City man scored, as did Rooney and Darren Bent.
February 2011 - Denmark (A) Won 2-1.
The start of a new era. Jack Wilshere, Ashley Young and Scott Parker all involved as England claim an impressive win. From this moment on, Capello's reshaped team perform with a verve that had been missing before.
WORST
June 2010 - Algeria (Cape Town) Drew 0-0.
Supposedly the easiest group game turned into a shambles. England barely created a chance of note and Rooney was amongst the most culpable. The Manchester United forward then criticised the fans as he was making his way off the pitch.
June 2010 - Germany (Bloemfontein) Lost 1-4.
The draw against Algeria ultimately led to a last-16 meeting no-one wanted. To this day, Capello maintains England's entire tournament would have been different if Frank Lampard's 'goal' had been allowed to make it 2-2. Rather obscures the hammering England too either side.
November 2010 - France (H) Lost 1-2.
Growing optimism punctured once more by a French team who were in even more of a mess after South Africa secured a deserved win. Peter Crouch scored four minutes from the end, otherwise the scoreline would have been more in keeping with the game as a whole.
June 2011 - Switzerland (H) Drew 2-2.
England dug themselves out of a hole to snatch a draw after they had trailed by two goals in the first-half. Major question marks now being asked of Frank Lampard despite his goal.
September 2011 - Wales (H) Won 1-0.
England won, but no-one was quite sure how. Ashley Young scored the only goal. However, the game was far more memorable for an unbelievable miss from Robert Earnshaw, which would have given Wales the draw that was the very minimum of what they deserved.
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