ANDYDUNN @andydunnmirror

FOOTBALL’S BEST COLUMNIST FROM ROME

was not one of Kyle Walker’s outstanding games, he still makes his presence felt.

This is a team and a squad to be proud of.

And no one is making a contribution more telling than Raheem Sterling.

Now is everyone going to believe it? The young man is a superstar.

He is a superstar building himself a formidable case to be player of the tournament.

To think many, not just some, considered Southgate’s initial selection of him to be ill-advised.

He is every bit as talismanic for this England team as Kane is.

He is no chest-thumper but he is a leader. He is quietly spoken but full of authority.

More importantly, he brings an element of unpredictable genius to a team that is often predictable.

Predictable, in a very, very good way, that is. Supremely well-organised, efficient, tactically disciplined. But

Sterling thinks outside the penalty box, he draws defenders out of position, he asks questions they are not expecting.

He was doing that even before the sublime assist for Kane’s fourth-minute opener.

The Ukraine back-line anticipated a lengthier crossfield but Sterling interrupted his stride with a beautiful reverse pass.

When Kane finished via the keeper, it meant England’s first five goals at the Euros had been shared by the Spurs striker and Sterling.

Two of the few survivors of England’s last-16 defeat to Iceland at Euro 2016, their importance cannot be stated strongly enough.

After Maguire had powered in a second from Shaw’s free-kick, Sterling and Kane were at it again – with a little help from the Manchester United left-back.

Sterling’s dragged-back pass sent Shaw free once again and his cross dropped on the grateful head of Kane for England’s third.

It almost looked like showboating time for Sterling but he would never cross that line.

None of this England squad would, not even after one of your senior men comes on as substitute and scores his first England goal, as Jordan Henderson (left) did.

It is a squad that is, in some ways, the image of its manager. Personable yet serious, humble but full of selfconfidence.

Belief but not cockiness. And that sums up Sterling, whose performance here in Rome was different to others he has posted in this tournament.

Here, he was selfless, all the time. Here, he was a link man.

And he was just too clever and too intelligent for a Ukrainian team that were, admittedly, a little limited in the context of this stage of the competition.

They certainly did not have a player with Sterling’s ingenuity, with his threat.

No wonder the few thousand England fans inside the Stadio Olimpico gave Sterling a rousing ovation when, not long after the hour mark, Southgate withdrew him with Wednesday in mind.

No wonder the England manager looked so happy as he congratulated his talisman.

Southgate is smiling and so, still, is his nation.

These lads are doing a mighty fine job all on their own.