Teddy Sheringham claimed today that Brazil were guilty of blatant gamesmanship as England's World Cup dreams ended with a 2-1 defeat.

A freak second half goal from Ronaldinho was sufficient to clinch a quarter-final success for the Brazilians who will now meet Turkey or Senegal.

But Sheringham feels that the samba sensations were allowed too much leeway by Mexican referee Felipe Ramos in using all their wiles and cunning to overcome Sven-Goran Eriksson's side.

The Tottenham striker said: "They are clever. Perhaps we are a bit naive at times. They are falling over and holding onto the ball and things like that.

"In the very first minute Roberto Carlos held onto the ball when we got a free-kick so we could not take it quickly.

"They got away with it once and they carried on getting away with it. The referee did not pull them up once.

"If any of our guys had done it, we would have probably got booked. They (Brazil) do it in such a clever manner. The ref is still smiling and they're still smiling.

"That's all part of the gamesmanship of playing in this tournament. You've got to have that sort of thing in your make-up to know what to do.

"I think in England you get very honest footballers and that is also what you get when you play for your country.

"If you look at the Latin temperament then it is all about not cheating, but gamesmanship.

"It frustrates you and gets you on a knife-edge."

Sheringham, who is tipping Brazil to win their fifth World Cup, also believes that England have to learn some harsh lessons in the way they play the game if they are to take the next step forward and challenge seriously for major honours.

He said: "The mood was of dismay after the game because, although Brazil played really well, they did not really outplay us. They did not have a major number of chances and we have gone out to a freak goal.

"But I think we need to learn. We can't afford to be chasing the ball for longer periods than we keep the ball.

"It's a little bit hit and miss when you do it our way although we've had a couple of great results and we've done very well.

"If you're going to look at going that little bit further, I think you've got to look at the teams who can control games and really make teams work."

Sheringham revealed that Eriksson was already beginning to cast an eye towards the future in his message to the players after the game.

He said: "The manager thanked us for giving everything and said we were so close to pulling off a great result. He also said that 95 per cent of the squad would have another European Championships and World Cup to look forward to."

That is unlikely to involve Sheringham who won what could be his 51st and final cap as a substitute - the role he has been predominantly employed in since France '98 - although nothing has been finalised.

He said: "I'm feeling okay at the moment so I want to carry on playing and see what happens."