Who is the best team in Europe?

It's not Spain. It's not France. It's not even, on the evidence of what we've seen so far, Germany. No, we're looking beyond the obvious ...

In Europe, another round of qualifying has come and gone. Some teams have won, some have lost. Goals have been scored and pitches have been invaded, managers have been sacked and reprieved. San Marino got a point. Lichtenstein got three. And with four rounds of Euro 2016 qualifying gone, it's time to ask: just who, at the moment, is the best team in Europe?

It's England!

Since their ignominious, unprecedentedly poor effort at the World Cup, England have played six games of football. Against Norway and Estonia, they were turgid and uninspired. And they won. Against Switzerland, Slovenia and Scotland, they were decent and occasionally perky. And they won. Against San Marino they turned up. And they won.

Six wins from six, in a time period that has seen Spain, Germany, France, the Netherlands and all the rest of the big lads either stutter, or end up flat on their faces. It's a results business, this business of ours, and when it comes to results, nobody can get close to that. There is one inescapable conclusion: England are the best football team in Europe.

Obviously, they've timed this badly. If they'd been the best team in Europe last summer, for example, they'd have won the World Cup. Indeed, you could argue that this moment -- the long post-World Cup hangover -- is precisely the worst time to be the best team in the world, since almost nothing of any importance takes place in these dark headachey days, but still. All hail Roy Hodgson. All hail Wayne Rooney. All hail ... oh, wait. Hang on. It's not England, it it? It's ...

the Czech Republic!

The Czech's didn't make it to the Brazil last summer, but since football started up again, they've been flying. An early, friendly loss to the USA aside, they've won four qualifiers out of four, most notably pinching a last-minute victory over the Dutch. Reborn under coach Pavel Vrba after finished third in World Cup qualifying, this isn't a side blessed with the superstars of earlier generations. But they have belief, they're feeling good, and they have the most important attribute that any team can have: luck

In their first game against the Netherlands, in the last minute, Daryl Janmaat headed the ball into his own post, wrongfooting goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen and setting up a last minute winner for Vaclav Pilar. In their most recent, against Iceland, a Jaroslav Plasil cross deflected first off defender, then off goalkeeper, for another fortunate winner. Not that anybody really cared too much how the goals are arriving. At that game, Czech brewery Gambrinus handed out free beers to everybody that attended; this is a country that's feeling so good about itself, it might well have grinned its way into being the best team on the continent. Unless, of course, that's ...

Slovakia!

After all, the Czechs did lose that early friendly against the USA. Whereas their former co-patriots Slovakia have a perfect, five-from-five record after the World Cup, a record that includes a toppling — on merit, mark you — of the mighty Spain. Okay, so this isn't the Spain of a few years ago, but they're still a marginally more impressive opponent than San Marino.

There are a fair few surprising teams sitting at the top of their qualifying groups. Along with Slovakia, Poland, Romania, Israel and Austria all came from Pot 3 in the qualifying draw, and all are looking down on their supposed betters. But it's Slovakia's record that makes the most compelling case: of their four wins, only one, the game against Spain, has come at home; the other three have all come away from the Štadión pod Dubňom. Even more enticingly, none have been against the designated minnow, Luxembourg. So, in essence, they're top of the group having chewed through the hardest part of the schedule. Unless, of course, the answer is ...

Northern Ireland!

Four teams from Pot 3 are in first place. Only one team from Pot 4 is in second place, and that's Wales, who have taken advantage of stumbles from Belgium and Bosnia & Herzegovina and are so far unbeaten. But even more impressive are Northern Ireland, the only team from Pot 5 -- that's the 38th through 46th best teams in Europe -- to be poised in the automatic qualification spots.

Okay, so the momentum that came from three early wins was quelled a little, following a 2-0 defeat to Romania this week just gone. But they've won away in both Greece and Hungary, had until recently one of the tightest defences on the continent, and have managed all this with a 394-year-old Roy Carroll in nets and Norwich City's Kyle Lafferty up front. Adjusting everything for expectations, footballing power, and squad depth, and it's as impressive a footballing story as Europe has had to offer in these dark autumn days. Except, of course ...

the Faroe Islands!

Look, they beat Greece. In Greece. No less august an authority than the Guardian calculate that result as being "the biggest international shock ever," noting that the two countries sit 169 places apart in the FIFA rankings. And if that's good enough for Manchester and London's foremost transatlantic digital-first organ, then it's good enough for us.

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