England fought back from a goal down to earn a 3-2 win at Slovenia and keep their European qualifying record perfect on Sunday.
Jack Wilshere provided the early fireworks with two spectacular goals, and then Wayne Rooney put Slovenia to the sword with the winner in the 86th minute.
The duo rightfully earned all the plaudits as England's near qualifying for Euro 2016.
'Perfect' England march on
The opposition has been modest, the performances often uneven, but you can't argue with the results. Six games in, and England have a 100 percent record, one of just two sides in the entire qualification competition to have won every game in which they have played. Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium -- they've all lost at least one game, whereas England have maximum points.
Of course, the question is will it mean anything? It's obviously easy to be cynical about England and with good reason; they have been here oh-so-many times before, with a strong performance in qualification resulting in limp early exits from the tournament when it arrives. Hopes have regularly been raised and then dashed, like animals unfamiliar with Pavlovian learned behaviour. Thus, it's almost impossible for England fans to actually enjoy these wins.
"The team has made progress," said Roy Hodgson, discussing the achievement of England going a season unbeaten, even if traditional "seasons" have little meaning in international football. "It's a good achievement, completing a season of 10 games with eight wins and two draws. That's not been done for over 20 years. The players deserve some credit for that, and get plenty of credit from me. Now we have to keep building on it. We want to keep that unbeaten run going."
Whether that run will amount to much remains to be seen, but for now Hodgson can be quite satisfied. Although, for perspective, the other team with a "perfect" record is Slovakia.
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