England made it three wins from three in their European Championship qualification campaign after a 4-0 win away at Malta.
The Three Lions went 1-0 up within the first 10 minutes after Ferdinando Apap's first own goal for his country handed Gareth Southgate's side the lead. The defender lashed Bukayo Saka's inviting pass into his own net.
Trent Alexander-Arnold being deployed in midfield rather than right-back dominated the pre-match discourse and the Liverpool talent did not disappoint as he notched his second England goal soon after to double the advantage.
Harry Kane made more history 94 seconds latter when his penalty put England three-nil up, as the strike marked his 50th competitive goal for his country - the most anyone has ever scored for the Three Lions.
England's dominance continued in the second-half and Alexander-Arnold was still pulling the strings and at the heart of all things positive.
Such was the cushion the Three Lions had created for themselves, boss Southgate indulged in the luxury of giving Harry Kane's legs a rest and replacing the Tottenham talisman with Newcastle striker Callum Wilson.
A second penalty was awarded late on and with Kane off the pitch, it was his deputy Wilson tasked with stepping up. The Magpies' main man did exactly that to send Bonello the wrong way to score England's fourth.
Trent shines in advanced role
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The Anfield academy graduate has found opportunities for England hard to come by during his career, but was given the chance to impress in the less familiar role of midfield against Malta.
A right-back by trade, Alexander-Arnold chucked on the number 10 shirt and tried to give many fans what they have wanted for so long in the middle of the park.
Eight minutes passed before Alexander-Arnold played his first sublime pass of the evening. The Liverpool hero whipped a remarkable ball between the full-back and the centre-back to allow Saka to pounce for the game's opening goal.
20 minutes later and Alexander-Arnold was on the scoresheet himself courtesy of a sensational right-footed strike that left Henry Bonello clutching at thin air as the ball whistle into his net.
Man City's treble winners benched
All four of the City players named in the England squad were omitted from Southgate's starting line-up, which came as no surprise, particularly in Jack Grealish's case.
Britain's most expensive footballer had hit the treble celebrations very hard and was pictured looking worse for wear throughout City's parade through Manchester city centre.
The fact that he was able to train with the Three Lions just days after is a testament to his athleticism, let alone be named in the match-day squad.
While Grealish, Kalvin Phillips and Kyle Walker were given a night of rest, Phil Foden was called into action to replace the injured Saka at half-time.
No rest for Saka
The young Arsenal ace became the first outfield Gunners player since Lee Dixon to play in every single league game for two seasons running after another long, gruelling campaign for Mikel Arteta's men.
His reward? More football. Less than a month after Arsenal's last league game, Saka was named in the starting line-up once again, much to the frustation of the Emirates faithful.
However, it took just eight minutes for the 21-year-old to show why Southgate likes him so much, as Saka played the pass across the face of goal before Apap put it through his own net.
With that being said, some stray touches soon followed along with the odd misplaced pass.
More concerning from Arteta's perspective is the fact Saka picked up an ankle knock before failing to emerge from the dressing room at half-time and being replaced by Phil Foden.
Maddison remains in the shop window
Ahead of the game, James Maddison admitted he was putting 'horse blinkers' on and focusing on the task at hand amid speculation over his club future.
It is highly unlikely that the 26-year-old remains at Leicester beyond the summer following the Foxes' relegation from the Premier League last term.
Both Tottenham and Newcastle have been touted with a move for Maddison, but the midfielder may have added to his price tag with a very assured display on the right flank.
Fans may have lost count over the amount of smart turns and deft flicks Maddison managed to pull off in the first-half alone, with one helping in the build-up for Alexander-Arnold's thunderbolt.
Maddson influenced proceedings by ensuring he didn't just hug the touchline and instead continued to come inside and get on the ball.
A stroll in the park
Jordan Pickford may not have an easier game of football for club or country.
The England goalkeeper was a spectator for so much of this tie, with Malta failing to create a single meaningful chance to test the England shot-stopper all evening.
By the time Kane had notched England's third just after the half hour-mark, it was a case of damage limitation for the hosts, who played to keep the score down from that point onwards.
Some will argue that tougher tests await this England side, but having won in Italy and beaten Ukraine at home, qualification is pretty much already secured for Southgate's men.
