England strengthen their Euro 2020 qualifying position.

England strengthen their Euro 2020 position.

After the agony and ecstasy of last year's World Cup in Russia, England resumed their quest for a place in next year's European Championships. In the light of recent events in political circles this may not be the time to cast aspersions on our European neighbours. Besides, Boris Johnson and his colleagues have got enough on their plate without worrying about the fortunes of our much cherished national football team.

Still, here we were picking up from where we left off last year when nobody told us anything about the UEFA Nations League and now, quite frankly, it all looks like Euro 2020 plain sailing from here onwards. It's time to drop anchor, splice the main brace and swallow a tot of rum. Can we hold back the excitement? This looks like the same script England teams have always read from in their qualifying quest.

After 5-1 thrashings of Montenegro and the Czech Republic it looks as if England can be afforded the luxury of a cigar, a glass of brandy and a gentle slumber in an armchair. England are not quite there yet but they can't be that far away from mission accomplished. In a sense they're dotting the 'i's' and crossing the 't's', a classic case of finishing the doors and windows before plonking on the roof.

Once again we are left with the feeling that the England team haven't really been tested properly before a major tournament. The suspicion is that England will always be fobbed off with sub standard and desperately poor European international teams that are so easily rolled over in these games that maybe England should be given a bye into immediate qualification. Poor Bulgaria are very much the whipping boys of world football and, although well disciplined defensively, have no idea how to handle infinitely more savvy opposition such as England.

On Saturday England, although bright, brisk and fully engaged in the opening stages of this game against Bulgaria, could have been accused of just a hint of arrogance. Under Gareth Southgate, England have been reinvented, reinvigorated and ready to give full  expression to a much more open and expansive brand of football. For the opening exchanges, England were a joy to behold, weaving, braiding their passes together, building from the back patiently and generously sharing possession whenever they could.

But for most of those opening 20 minutes England were just playing that familiar game of Pass the Parcel, the ball rapidly zipping around the Wembley pitch like a seaside pin ball machine without the desired impact. It may have been a pleasure to watch as a neutral but this was an exhibition rather than a game of football and we all know that though constant ball retention can be deeply impressive it is nothing without a glut of goals and thrilling entertainment for the Wembley crowd.

Of course there was a measured restraint about England that has to be advisable when your opponents are becoming insufferably negative. England picked their way through a stubborn red Bulgarian wall but without realising that Communism was a thing of the past. There was a dull helplessness about the Bulgarians that reminded you very much of those bad, old days of the Iron Curtain. Bulgaria were pitifully weak, completely lacking in any kind of ambition and seemed to be longing for either Heathrow or Stansted airport.

At times they resembled the lumpen proletarian, toiling conscientiously with all their heart and soul, sweating profusely for all they were the worth. At times they looked like those Victorian miners digging and chopping away in the pits, faces blackened with the soot and grime of hard working drudgery. Occasionally the Bulgarians would break threateningly and then discovered that they had the wrong tools for the job so simply gave up and just waved the white flag of surrender.

Most accidentally though England were almost gifted the lead half way through the first half. A shockingly shoddy piece of Bulgarian defending allowed England to steal the ball off them. Raheem Sterling, with delightful speed off the mark and a wonderful sense of alertness, nipped in between fumbling Bulgarian feet, surging aggressively towards the by line and then clipping the ball back low  to the oncoming captain Harry Kane who will never score an easier goal for England.

And so it was that England had taken full advantage of sloppy Bulgarian defensive ineptitude. This would become the template for much of a mild and still warm Wembley evening. Many a shadow has fallen over the England national team over the years but this felt different. England were coasting, cruising and gliding over the hallowed Wembley acres. At times there was a waltz, even a tango at times and at times the Bulgarians might have had a sharp stiletto in their repertoire.

Much to the relief of everybody Bulgaria simply retreated back into their shell. With Declan Rice of West Ham holding his own admirably at the back with some outstanding tackling and swift interventions. Kieran Trippier shoring up with his unique combination of adventure and a quick eye for a marauding, overlapping run and Harry Maguire of Manchester United still in complete command of the English penalty area this was never going to be a night for Bulgarian wine and roses.

All the while Danny Rose of Spurs began to grow into the game with his strength and defensive flexibility, venturing forward at every opportunity as the Bulgarians frequently back pedalled like cyclists going in the wrong direction. There was a soundness and efficiency about England's football which, while never likely to win any medals for technical merit, still managed to impress.

In England's midfield engine room, the stokers and the men in the heat of the furnace, were delivering the goods. Jordan Henderson continues to stamp his majesty and authority all over the English midfield. His passing continues to be of the silkiest kind, all delicate fabrics and rich, plush furnishings, while the Liverpool play maker maintains his positional sense with glorious intelligence and common sense of the highest order.

And then there is Ross Barkley, an immensely gifted midfield player who has yet to fulfill the potential that his critics may have thought he's always had. Barkley is confident, assured and handsomely comfortable. While at Everton Barkley seemed to be a square peg in a round hole, not exactly out of place but struggling for recognition in an Everton side who didn't really know how to handle him.

At Chelsea Barkley is finally developing into the kind of player we hoped he would be. He swaggers and shimmies, darts and dashes as if the game just came naturally to him. He wiggles and wriggles through defences with that electrifying turn of pace and impish impudence that once characterised a certain Paul Gascoigne. The years of wild revelry may be completely behind Gazza but Barkley will always be quite happy to be known as the nightingale who sings in the square.

So it was that England extended their lead. After the explosive Marcus Rashford had once again created havoc with his direct running at defenders, Bulgaria were once again on the back foot and looking back at their wing mirror. Rashford sprinted past his defender as if they were not there, blasting a path into the Bulgarian penalty area where he wrong footed his man and then turned back on him. It was the ultimate act of deception and his defender had no alternative but to bring Rashford down. Harry Kane planted the ball firmly into the net from the penalty spot like somebody shelling peas.

Bulgaria were now utterly demoralised and wishing that the referee would blow the whistle for full time before they did it themselves. They were a ragged, threadbare team that had been both effortlessly exposed and frequently exploited for who they were- a limp and lifeless international football team with nothing to offer the paying customers at Wembley and even less to talk about after the game.

When Harry Kane had burst into the area after once again ransacking possession from the Bulgarians, the game was well and truly up for the opposition. Kane, nicking the ball away from an incompetent defender, completed his interception with another mazy and penetrative run that took him to the inevitable by line. This time he cut back the ball sharply to the onrushing Raheem Sterling who just bundled the ball into the Bulgarian net for England's third goal.

Finally England underlined their embarrassing superiority on the night with a fourth goal. Kane was once again instrumental, tip toeing his way into the area where another Bulgarian defender seemed to forget where he was and what he was supposed to be doing. Kane was naively tripped again and promptly tucked the ball almost wisely into the net. Bulgaria gave their very convincing impersonation of a team who wished they hadn't bothered to turn up on the night.

At the end of the evening the smoothly tailored Gareth Southgate, always the sensible optimist rather than the misguidedly over ambitious, beamed and smiled from ear to ear. There were none of those memorable fist pumps and extravagant waving of the arms to the crowd. England though are on the verge of clinching their place at Euro 2020 and only the foolishly cynical would say that even if England do qualify the chances are that they'll still do what they normally do and fail miserably. There is a real confidence about Southgate's eleven that does promise so much more. It's time for a genuine display of patriotism. Be prepared for another wardrobe of Southgate's famous waistcoats.