History was made at the Khalifa International Stadium in Qatar after England recorded their biggest ever victory in an opening match at a major tournament: a 6-2 victory against Iran in the Three Lions' first game at the 2022 World Cup. And two Newcastle United players played their part.
Kieran Trippier, unsurprisingly, started from the off at right-back on Monday while club team-mate Callum Wilson replaced captain Harry Kane in the 76th minute as England put Iran to the sword. Wilson quickly made an impact after coming on - unselfishly setting up fellow substitute Jack Grealish for the Three Lions' sixth goal - while Trippier ended up wearing the captain's armband in the closing stages following another committed performance.
It was the first time since 1998 that Newcastle had two England internationals on the field at a World Cup at the same time and these really are elite level players with the mentality to match - and that is an added bonus for Gareth Southgate. Take Trippier's verdict, for instance, after Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka (twice), Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford and Grealish had all fired his side to a convincing win.
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"It was a good three points, of course, but there were moments in the game where we know we can improve," Trippier told BBC Sport. "Myself as well when I gave the ball away a couple of times. We can improve as always."
Trippier may not have chalked up an assist, as Wilson did, but the 32-year-old's experience at this level certainly told in his third successive major tournament. Take the aftermath of Saka's first goal, which made it 2-0, just before half-time. As England players celebrated by the corner flag, Trippier was nowhere to be seen - and for good reason.
Eight upset Iran players had surrounded referee Raphael Claus and were attempting to put pressure on the official. England's opponents felt that Harry Maguire had fouled defender Rouzbeh Cheshmi when he knocked the ball down to Saka in the 43rd minute so Trippier, smartly, did not leave the official's side.
Claus, refereeing at his first World Cup, was not about to change his mind, regardless, but officials can second guess their next big decision after being confronted like this and Trippier was not about to let that happen. The England international repeatedly wagged his finger as Iran players pleaded their case before Harry Kane and Declan Rice jogged over.
It was the sort of leadership watching Newcastle fans have seen on a weekly basis from the Magpies' stand-in skipper and one of the many reasons why Trippier was always going to be one of the first names on Gareth Southgate's team sheet. Trippier, after all, is Southgate's big-game player, whether it is the opening game of a World Cup or the final of a European Championships. No wonder the 32-year-old stepped up as captain of his country once more when Kane went off late on.
Trippier really is in the form of his life and, as former Newcastle and England midfielder Jermaine Jenas put it in co-commentary for the BBC: "He can be a real go-to for Gareth Southgate." It is not often that a defender is spoken about like that, but Trippier ranks among the best players in the Premier League when it comes to successful crosses, passes into the final third, chances created and chances created from set-pieces. There were glimpses of those qualities in the first half, in particular, as Trippier repeatedly tried to link-up with Kane from free-kicks.
There were seven minutes on the clock when Trippier looked like he was going to whip a free-kick into the box as he spoke with Saka before catching Iran sleeping and threading the ball to Kane, whose teasing cross looked destined for the head of Raheem Sterling before goalkeeper Alireza Beiranvand got there first and collided with Majid Hosseini.
The link-up between Trippier and Kane had clearly been worked on in the brief period England had on the training pitches ahead of this game. Indeed, midway through the first half, Trippier was adjusting his socks and looking into the distance as if he was going to swing another free-kick into the box before again attempting to play a low ball to Kane.
However, perhaps what caught the eye the most on Monday was Trippier's defending on an afternoon where he made more tackles than any other player on the field and won all of his duels. When Maguire's header struck the crossbar in the 31st minute, from Trippier's corner, it was the right-back winning the ball back from Milad Mohammadi after Saka gave it away. Even late on, in the 86th minute, it was Trippier making another crucial intervention to reclaim possession deep in his own half after Rice had lost it.
By that stage, Newcastle team-mate Wilson had entered the fray. It may have been Wilson's World Cup debut, but the striker quickly made an impact as he teed up fellow substitute Jack Grealish in the 89th minute after squaring the ball when he could have gone for glory himself.
Wilson has worked on this aspect of his game - setting up Jacob Murphy against Brentford last month from a similar situation - and it has not gone unnoticed. As Southgate put it after the game: "He could have been selfish but he was really thinking of the team even in that moment."
With England already a step closer to reaching the knockout stages, Wilson and Trippier look set to fly the flag for Newcastle United for another while yet while goalkeeper Nick Pope will also be ready if called upon.
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