In 1958 England qualified for the tournament in Sweden with wins over the Republic of Ireland and Denmark with a team that had lost only once in 17 games . Three months before the tournament began the Munich air disaster robbed the team of key players from Manchester United : Roger Byrne , Tommy Taylor and Duncan Edwards died . England drew against the USSR , Brazil and Austria but lost to the Soviet Union in a playoff for a quarter-final place
Munich air disaster
Munich air disaster
Walter Winterbottom