Many expected England to win their opening Qatar 2022 World Cup match with Iran on Monday, although it's fair to say that few fans will have expected them to do so quite so emphatically.
That is not to disrespect England's opponents in any way, they are of course ranked 20th in the world, making them the best Asian outfit at the tournament. More, it is to say that in recent years England supporters have been made to suffer somewhat and the quality of Iran had led to the expectation of yet another tightly contested, low-scoring contest.
But under Gareth Southgate, England have really begun to click at major tournaments. The excitement is back after leading his country to the semi-finals in Russia, followed by the Euro 2020 Final heartbreaking penalty loss to Italy last summer, even if the football since then has been something of a return to the norm.
