We should remember it wasn’t always this easy for England at World Cups

It isn’t supposed to be this easy and rarely has been before. It certainly wasn’t the last time. Four years ago it took Jordan Pickford’s left hand and Eric Dier’s right boot to finally and mercifully see England past Colombia in a penalty shootout in the last-16 in Russia.

Fast forward to Qatar and this World Cup and things have been far more serene, goals from Jordan Henderson, Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka propelling the Three Lions past Senegal in the first knockout round and into the quarter-finals. It speaks to this team’s progress and the job that Gareth Southgate has done in his six years in charge of the national side.

Before his arrival in 2016, England hadn’t won a knockout game since 2006. Now they’ve won three in as many tournaments. A third quarter-final in that time awaits on Saturday and perhaps even another semi-final and final to come in the next fortnight.

Southgate is often derided for what some see as defensive, safety first tactics, with critics instead wanting him to embolden this new England breed to attack, to let off the handbrake, as is so often said. That is not how success in major tournaments is delivered, however. It is not about the performances along the journey, only the results that keep you on it that matter.

That the manner of this latest one, in a very comfortable 3-0 victory over the African champions, also matched the outcome will please Southgate of course, a slow opening half hour emphatically put to bed with three quick goals either side of half time definitively putting the game away long before the final whistle. This team’s upward trajectory will need to continue with defending champions France next up in the quarter-finals on Saturday.

With star Kylian Mbappe appearing to be ascending to an even higher plane here in Qatar, England will have to match him if they are to make it past France and into the last four. That they have a chance at all is testament to Southgate. England have rarely demonstrated this level of consistency at tournaments. It may be about to get a lot harder but we should remember it wasn’t always this easy.

Yours,

Ben Burrows

Sports editor