<P> England also did not qualify for the fourth World Cup which took place in South America . This time , England were denied by Italy , who had scored three more goals than England after both teams finished on the same points . Goals scored dictated who qualified after the head - to - head record between the two sides finished the same , following a 2 -- 0 home win for each team . The lower - ranked teams in the group were Finland and Luxembourg , but the size of the wins against them proved to be decisive . Nevertheless , Ron Greenwood was given a second chance in charge of England , after taking the role in 1977 . </P>
<P> England also did not qualify for the fourth World Cup which took place in South America . This time , England were denied by Italy , who had scored three more goals than England after both teams finished on the same points . Goals scored dictated who qualified after the head - to - head record between the two sides finished the same , following a 2 -- 0 home win for each team . The lower - ranked teams in the group were Finland and Luxembourg , but the size of the wins against them proved to be decisive . Nevertheless , Ron Greenwood was given a second chance in charge of England , after taking the role in 1977 . </P>
who knocked england out of 1978 world cup
who knocked england out of 1978 world cup
Italy
Italy