TAMING SPAIN IN THEIR OWN DEN

The youngest England side this century handed Spain their first competitive defeat at home for 15 years. With this being rated as England’s finest performance against a top-ranked team in recent times, HT looks at how they went about scripting the win:

STERLING MOMENT

Sterling ended a prolonged 27-game stretch of goalless action for the national squad, which lasted almost three years, with an early opener against Spain. He celebrated it with his second from close range before the break, which handed England a 3-0 lead at half-time.

The Manchester City forward, addressing the media after Friday's goalless draw against Croatia, had admitted to feeling the pressure to deliver. Sterling sure responded in an emphatic fashion on Monday.

The forward's first goal for the senior England side came against Lithuania in March, 2015 and in October the same year he got his second against Estonia.

POTENT ENGLAND

After surviving a torrid opening, England shred Spain’s defence to pieces and their perseverance in the first half resulted in those three goals.

The doubts over the ability of their frontline to function ruthlessly also evaporated soon with their clinical display. Three Lions scored three goals from their five attempts.

WORKHORSE KANE

Harry Kane didn’t score but his impact on the game was huge. Kane did the spade work for two of the goals that put England three goals up at the break. When England had to dig deep in the second half, under relentless pressure, Kane chipped in defensively as well to quell the Spanish charge.