Jude Bellingham was only 14 when England began their last World Cup campaign but he was already planning for the future. “Even watching that I was only ever thinking: ‘How can I get into this team?’” the midfielder said last week.
Four-and-a-half years on and the 19‑year‑old scored his first senior international goal on the biggest stage as Gareth Southgate’s side kicked off their 2022 World Cup campaign in style. The 6-2 thumping of Iran in which the 21-year-old Bukayo Saka scored two brilliant goals showed that England’s emerging generation are determined to do things their own way.
