England qualify for Euro 2024 as Harry Kane breaks Sir Bobby Charlton’s record and Bellingham runs rings around Italy
AS Gareth Southgate’s England side booked their place in Germany next summer, it was difficult to escape one thought: if Jude Bellingham is fit, they can be champions of Europe.
Back in the bad old days, England used to arrive at major tournaments full of jingoistic tub-thumping with precious little to back up our nation’s empty bluster.
Not now. Not when they are blessed with possibly the best midfielder on the planet, a 20-year-old phenomenon who is bossing the Bernabeu with Real Madrid and can turn the tide of elite football matches single-handedly.
There was a brace from England’s prolific captain Harry Kane either side of a decisive thumping effort from Marcus Rashford in a 3-1 win, the second victory over the reigning European champions in this qualifying campaign.
But after Italy had shaded the first goal, and took the lead through Gianluca Scamacca, it was Bellingham who grabbed this game by the chestnuts and ensured that England would secure a seventh victory in eight unbeaten games since the World Cup.
With an outrageous tackle, a saucy dummy and a smart pass, Bellingham set up Rashford’s goal.
Then the lanky young Brummie turned on the style, frequently leaving a bunch of hard-nosed Italian midfielders and defenders groping at thin air as he passed them.
What a player he is. As at Hampden Park last month, you watched him and wondered whether you had ever seen a more consistently brilliant England footballer.
Here, Southgate had Kane consistently dropping deep and pinging passes from deep to make room for Bellingham in the centre-forward channel - a smart move which had the Italians bewildered at times.
In truth, there isn’t much jeopardy in these Euros qualifying groups any more. England would probably even qualify with Steve McClaren in charge these days.
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But especially by defeating Italy twice, this has been an impressive campaign - one which justified Southgate’s decision to stay on after the World Cup.
That decision must have been influenced by the burgeoning brilliance of Bellingham, who looked on the cusp of greatness at times in Qatar.
After all the hubbub about the booing of Jordan Henderson in Friday’s bafflingly-staged and instantly forgettable friendly against Australia, at least we had a proper fixture here.
And unlike the last time Italy played here at the 2021 Euros Final, there was an air of calm. The complete absence of anybody on Wembley Way with an ignited firework inserted up their rectum was a welcome relief.
England had made a lively enough start - Kyle Walker threatening on the right, Marcus Rashford whistling a long-range free-kick narrowly over.
So they were stunned by the Italian opener on 15 minutes.
A swift dart down the right from Giovanni Di Lorenzo and a menacing cross which Davide Frattesi miskicked before Scamacca hammered into the roof of the net from close range.
England’s defending was lazy to the point of being static and for the next ten minutes or so they were terrible.
Suddenly Kane was feeling the need to adopt a holding midfield role, where he missed a couple of tackles as Italy threatened to double their lead.
From a rapid rat-a-tat passing move, Scamacca drilled just wide.
The atmosphere was funereal. It was difficult to imagine how 90,000 people on a night out could be quite so hushed.
But then England’s best two players - their exceptional exiles - combined to penetrate the Italian defence.
Kane slipped through a cute pass and Bellingham’s burst of pace got him the wrong side of Di Lorenzo, who cleaned him out with a sliding tackle.
There was an inordinately long VAR check for such a clear and obvious foul but Kane wasn’t fazed, thumping a trademark effort into the corner, with the monumental figure of Gianluigi Donnarumma flinging himself in the opposite direction.
It was Kane’s seventh England goal in as many games since his World Cup penalty miss.
Bellingham started exuberantly cheerleading the crowd in an attempt to rouse them.
The last time Italy were here, it was all about the hooligan element. This time it was the librarian element.
Rashford had an angled shot pushed away by Donnarumma but Jordan Pickford was called into action in first-half injury-time, with a smart stop to deny Tottenham left-back Destiny Udogie, who had toasted John Stones.
After the break, though, Udogie was lucky not to concede a spot-kick when he body-checked Phil Foden, only for ref Clement Turpin to turn a blind eye.
Bellingham was becoming a major influence, winning a free-kick with a surging run just before he engineered England’s second.
The Brummie won a bulldozing tackle to dispossess Nicola Barrella just outside the England box, collected a pass from Foden and then dummied an opponent in midfield before he released Rashford.
The United charged at the Italian defence, cut inside and walloped his shot past Donnarumma.
It was such an emphatic goal that it briefly woke up this soporific crowd.
Bellingham was full of it now, executing a drag-back and a back-heeled pass for Kane near the corner flag which suggested he’d been studying matadors out in Spain.
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England’s third goal was a hopeful punt from Marc Guehi, a pig’s ear of a header from Alessandro Bastoni and a thudding finish from Kane.
It set yet another record for Kane, taking his tally of goals at Wembley to 24 - beating Bobby Charlton's tally of 23 at the national stadium.