After a handful of below par performances, no one would've necessarily expected the drubbing that England handed out to Serbia in their own back yard on Tuesday night.

It was a performance that had been a long time coming and it's little wonder that Thomas Tuchel was delighted in the aftermath.

As well he might be.

England needed a big performance

Before that demolition job, Serbia hadn't conceded a goal in their current World Cup qualifying campaign and they'd lost only one of their previous 28 WC qualifiers, against Belgium in 2012.

In what was sure to be an intimidating atmosphere at the Stadion Rajko Mitic, the Three Lions would've understood that only a performance of near footballing perfection would've been good enough to come away with the points and put them in complete control of Group K.

The early signs were good as the visitors kept 85.6% of the ball in the opening quarter hour. Reece James' 100% pass completion (28 from 28) during that time was also notable.

Eight shots to Serbia's none before England opened the scoring was another indicator that it could be a long night for the hosts, and the goal when it arrived was simplicity itself.

Harry Kane marked his 109th cap with a goal

Harry Kane was making his 109th cap - taking him to fourth in the all-time England appearance list and leapfrogging the great Bobby Moore in the process - and he arrived late and unmarked into the area as Declan Rice swung in a corner and powered home his header.

A 22nd consecutive World Cup qualifier scored in by the Three Lions bodes well, particularly as they'd won all of the games in the current cycle where they'd scored first, and Kane's 44th in 40 major qualifiers (WC/Euros) evidenced his importance to the side once more.

Elliot Anderson was sensational again as a No.6, and his involvement throughout was key to England's forward momentum.

Most of his passes were either out to Reece James on the right (14), back to Ezri Konsa (10) or sideways to Declan Rice (12), and taking into account those coming back the opposite way, the vast majority of England's play, particularly in the early stages of the match was centred around those areas.

Just two minutes and 30 seconds after Kane's goal, a wonderful passage of play saw Anderson release Noni Madueke into space and the new Arsenal signing finished with aplomb.

His first England goal came on his ninth appearance for the national team and with his 18th shot across those matches.

The relief at breaking his duck was obvious, and it put the visitors in pole position for the remainder of the game.

Three Lions in the ascendancy

Half-time couldn't come quickly enough for hosts who hadn't had a shot on target and who were below par right across the pitch. Veljko Birmancevic, for example, attempted just five passes in the opening 45 minutes.

The pattern continued after the break, and England had already managed to get four shots away before Ezri Konsa made the game safe for Tuchel's side in the 52nd minute.

Not since September 2019 vs Portugal had Serbia conceded three goals, but it was no more than the Three Lions deserved.

Crystal Palace ace Marc Guehi, who assisted Konsa, was later on the scoresheet himself, underscoring a superb individual performance that included a game-high pass completion of 97.3% for those players who had made at least 25 passes.

Considering all of the noise surrounding his potential summer move away from Selhurst Park, to put that to one side and produce a performance of such excellence is worth recognising.

His goal also represented the first time since 15th November 2021 against San Marino (10-0) that England had scored four goals in a game.

Rashford's goal capped wonderful all-round performance

A late penalty won by Ollie Watkins gave Marcus Rashford the chance to make it five, and his successful spot-kick handed Serbia their heaviest-ever competitive home defeat. Their inability to get a shot on target, too, was the first time since at least 2010 that this had happened in World Cup qualification games.

Another clean sheet for the Three Lions meant 740 minutes without conceding - the longest run in the national team's history. For all of the criticism surrounding the poor performances against Andorra (twice) and Senegal, that's a stat to be proud of.

It wasn't just in defence where England excelled either.

24 shots at goal, including 12 on target, an xG of 4.22 and 37 touches in the opposition box are all signs that Thomas Tuchel is beginning to get his message across in all areas of the pitch.

Now seven points clear of the chasing pack, England are in the box seat in terms of qualification to next year's showpiece, and in Tuchel, the national team might have just found the man who can take them all the way this time.

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E. Konsa

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