Second-half resilience is another reason to celebrate historic triumph

SOON after their run to the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup, England travelled to Seville for a UEFA Nations League game against Spain and blew the opposition out of the water with a stunning first-half display.

- Malik Ouzia

It was easily the best 45 minutes of football produced under Gareth Southgate, and offered rebuke to those who thought the relative success of Russia a fluke, spouting the now familiar refrain: that England had lost to the first good team they had played.

Off the back of another World Cup exit where, actually, that criticism painted a more accurate, if not fully coloured-in picture, here was another first half to suggest that heading into a fourth tournament cycle under Southgate, this is a team still on the up.

England led Italy by two goals at the break and would have deservedly matched the 3-0 cushion they held at half-time in Seville had Jack Grealish not tried to be too cute in steering wide at the end of a wonderful move, with Gianluigi Donnarumma out of the picture.

But if England are to go all the way in Germany less than 18 months from now and realise the potential that clearly lies within this crop of players in lifting a major trophy, then perhaps the second 45 minutes in Naples will be looked back on as similarly significant in the Southgate era.