England were at their dominant best in a 4-0 win over South Korea in Milton Keynes to make the perfect start to their Arnold Clark Cup defence.
The Lionesses made light work of a team ranked 15th in the world, to go straight to the top of the table, with Georgia Stanway, Chloe Kelly, Alessia Russo and the impressive Lauren James on the scoresheet. The European Champions still have Italy and Belgium to face as they aim to retain their crown from 12 months ago.
Sarina Wiegman said before the tournament began that it would be a crucial stop on the road to the World Cup finals this summer. So who impressed in England's first game of what could be a huge 2023.
Winners
Lauren James
An obvious pick considering she was player of the match, but James' performance laid down a huge marker, as the competition for places in the wide forward roles becomes fierce. Given a start in only her third international start, the Chelsea star played like she had something to prove.
Her mazy dribbles and driving runs gave Korea problems from the off and she also was a threat at the back post on the occasions where Chloe Kelly would be rampaging down the other channel. It was still threatening to be a frustrating night for England against an extremely defensive Korean backline.
That was until James drove into the heart of the penalty area and was brought down, earning a spot kick which Stanway fired home. The Chelsea forward deserved a goal of her own, which she eventually got in the 79th minute to crown an excellent performance.
Wiegman then withdrew her to a superb ovation from all four corners of Stadium MK. If she can maintain her current form, it will be extremely difficult to leave James out of the starting line-up let alone the squad.
Alex Greenwood
Arguably no-one player was more unlucky to miss out on a starting XI place at Euro 2022 than Alex Greenwood. Rachel Daly's conversion to temporary left-back during the tournament meant Greenwood's pitch time was limited.
She has responded since with possibly her best run of form in a Man City shirt, producing some outstanding performance from centre-half for Gareth Taylor's team in the WSL. Against Korea she was given the nod at left-back and didn't disappoint.
Even on a poor pitch, Greenwood's touch and movement was excellent. Her cross for Russo's goal was the highlight, but it was a big performance from a player who will be looking to become a first-choice for Wiegman ahead of the World Cup.
Alessia Russo
After Ellen White's retirement, many have considered Russo the number one option as a centre forward for England. The Man Utd forward did score in the first two internationals post-Euros, but hasn't had the smoothest ride at international level since.
She missed the October camp through injury and had an off night in the 4-0 win over Japan last November, before Rachel Daly was given a chance as the England no.9 against Norway. Considering the recent speculation around Russo's future and the fact she hasn't scored for her club in over a month, she needed a goal last night and found one with a clever finish.
The forward intelligently dinked the ball past the goalkeeper at the near post on the slide, after Greenwood's dangerous low cross. She would have scored more had it not been for the woodwork. All in all, it was a good night's work for Russo.
Losers
Lauren Hemp
Picking any losers from such an excellent performance is incredibly tough. The only reason Lauren Hemp had a tougher night than most was not really through any fault of her own.
But the performances of James and Kelly down the flanks, England's two best players on the night, and Russo down the middle won't have helped her own chances of holding down her place in the Lionesses' front three. Hemp will get her chance though, maybe even at former club Bristol City where the Lionesses face Belgium next Wednesday.
The 22-year-old is still one of Wiegman's most-trusted players and has rarely put in a bad performance in an England shirt for the Dutchwoman. But it was a surprise not to see her in the starting XI and although she came on for Kelly with just under half an hour to play she wasn't able to have her usual impact on proceedings, with the game already won.
But she knows how to bounce back. You can expect Hemp to put in a big performance when she is selected in either of the next two games and underline her credentials for a starting spot.
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