Coach Steve Cooper believes England are firing on all cylinders as they head into the European Under-17 Championship quarter-finals.
The Young Lions made it three wins from three games in their final Group D match on Wednesday, beating Netherlands 3-0 to top the table and set up a last-eight tie with Republic of Ireland on Saturday.
And Cooper was left beaming with the manner of the team performance, as a double from Jadon Sancho and a late strike from Callum Hudson-Odoi were enough to despatch the Dutch.
“We play as a team in possession and out of possession,” explained Cooper.
“So if we start defending from the front and we get that right then, it’s a lot easier throughout the pitch and I’m really pleased with both aspects of our game.
“We haven’t conceded a goal since the sixth minute of the first game and it’s pleasing as we’ve come up against some good attacking players.
“We were really pleased with the performance, we thought it was a tough start and Netherlands came out and took the game to us, so we took a little time to settle but once we did, I thought we looked like a threat.
“We thought there were areas that we could exploit with the ability that we’ve got in the team and fortunately it came together.
“It was a clean sheet and three goals against a good team and football nation, so it’s always going to look like a good scoreline.”
With qualification to the quarter-finals now secured and the prospect of a clash with the Irish in Velika Gorica at the weekend, belief is high in the England camp.
And, with the Young Lions remaining at their Zagreb base for the knock-out stages, they are hoping to build on the momentum gathered so far.
“We’re looking forward to every game we play,” he added.
“We’ll just focus on ourselves, recuperate after this game and get back to work to put a plan together for the game in a couple of days.”
