Have we really though?
I suggest you go to Youtube and take a look at some of our WC games from the past (90's maybe). We had way better players then in almost every position. The only 'progress' we've made is instead of good players we already knew about, we now have a few good players who were relatively unknown before. Can you honestly say we have anyone of the quality of Scholes, Shearer, Sheringham or Owen? Even players like Gerrard, Lampard and Beckham were better than this lot is ever going to be
I think in this tournament we benefited from the relative degrading of the opposing teams. Italy and Holland never even qualified, so that took away two teams that would normally beat us. Germany, Spain, and Argentina are way past their best. Add the fact that we were in a weak group and then had a relatively easy path to the semis. As soon as we came up against a top team, all the old failings became apparent.
Yet it was a golden chance to win it. But I don't expect that to happen again for a long, long time.