Harry Kane hit a first-half hat-trick as England secured their qualification for Euro 2020 with a 7-0 win over Montenegro, moving on from the Raheem Sterling-Joe Gomez saga in emphatic fashion in their 1000th match.
The build-up to the Three Lions’ milestone fixture had been marred by a confrontation between team-mates Sterling and Gomez, resulting in the Manchester City winger being dropped for Thursday’s game.
But against poor opponents at Wembley, England’s tough week behind the scenes looked to have been forgotten momentarily.
Needing only a point to qualify, victory secured top spot in Group A as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Kane, Marcus Rashford and Tammy Abraham were on target.
However, a reminder of a testing few days came in the form of a mixed reaction for Liverpool defender Gomez on his introduction from the bench late on, even as Sterling applauded his colleague from the stands.
While Gomez started on the bench, John Stones and Harry Maguire – the preferred centre-backs – were scarcely engaged in a defensive sense as Gareth Southgate’s side quickly took control.
The opener arrived after just 11 minutes as Ben Chilwell picked out Oxlade-Chamberlain to rifle low into the net from the right side of the box, marking his first international start since March 2018 in style.