MAGNIFICENT SEVEN! England batter Croatia as Kane underlines Ballon d'Or credentials in historic Nations League win - 5 talking points

England filled their boots against Croatia in a staggering Nations League rout over their familiar but out of sorts opponents in Rijeka.

It took just eight minutes for England to take the lead in absolutely ruthless fashion, which was a sign of things to come. A stray pass from Josko Gvardiol was picked off and Jude Bellingham slid the perfect ball into Harry Kane, who found the top corner.

Bellingham made it 2-0 with a tap-in from Anthony Gordon's pass from the byline and the Barcelona forward should have put England three up inside 25 minutes, only to put his close-range effort straight at Dominik Livakovic.

It hardly mattered. Minutes later, Jarell Quansah put in a peach of a cross and Gordon stooped at the back post to head in his third goal in as many Nations League games. Mateo Kovacic passed up the chance of an open goal after Elliot Anderson was caught on the ball before it got even worse for the hosts.

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Bellingham picked out an unmarked Bukayo Saka after a flowing counter-attack to make it 4-0 before half-time. Slaven Bilic made three substitutions at the break, but it made no difference, with Kane netting from Anderson's cross early in the second half to continue the rout.

Saka added his second as Croatia's performance turned from terrible to farcical before the Arsenal winger spurned another simple chance for a hat-trick. Bellingham put a one-on-one chance wide but made up for it by completing a hat-trick of assists with a through ball for Morgan Rogers to make it 7-0.

Here are the talking points from a remarkably one-sided affair.

It's hard to find anything new to say about England's captain, so in the absence of a unique thought I'll stick to reiterating what's already been said, yet is still worth repeating. Harry Kane is dynamite.

The way he took the opening goal underlined how he's mastered his craft. After Marc Guehi intercepted his Manchester City teammate Gvardiol's pass, Kane was already positioning himself in between the two Croatia centre-backs. He then took a perfect touch from Bellingham's pass and, without hesitating, picked out the top corner with his next touch.

That was his 88th goal in 124 appearances. He added his 89th in the second half and is entirely deserving of the Ballon d'Or later this month.

The match was played in an odd atmosphere - and that wasn't just down to England's utter dominance from kick-off. A loophole in UEFA's rules meant that 6,000 children were allowed to attend, despite Croatia - in theory - playing the game behind closed doors as punishment for racist and discriminatory fan behaviour during last year’s Nations League.

The rules state that “children up to the age of 14 (duly accompanied) from schools and/or football academies can be invited to the match free of charge”. They turned up to watch their team get schooled in Rijeka.

While England were fluent and red-hot, the home defending was shambolic. The amount of space Slaven Bilic's side gave up made things very easy and gave the 100 travelling fans something to cheer.

The game was over by half-time and all four of England's goals had a Spanish influence. One of the talking points around the first Nations League game was whether the Three Lions should copy Spain's blueprint, or forge their own.

Well, they are benefiting from the country either way, with Gordon and Bellingham at the centre of their strategy under Thomas Tuchel. Everything Gordon touches turns to gold right now in an England shirt - and the confidence boost his move to Barcelona has given him shouldn't be underestimated.

Bellingham, meanwhile, has been on fire for club and country of late. He ended the game with three assists and one goal to go with his three goals and three assists in seven La Liga games for Real Madrid this season. Tuchel's front four is now set in stone, with Kane, Bellingham, Saka and Gordon accounting for 26 of the team's last 30 goals.

Trent Alexander-Arnold was man of the match in the 2-0 win over Czech Republic on Tuesday but was forgotten by Saturday night. When the team sheet was given in his absence raised a few eyebrows, while Tuchel's explanation for picking Quansah only made it worse.

"There is a lot to defend on the side," the England manager said, basically confirming the long-held and widespread belief about Alexander-Arnold: that he isn't secure enough in defence. The fact that Quansah didn't have much defending to do and registered an assist with a Trent-like cross no doubt solidified Tuchel's thinking.

With Reece James an established Tuchel favourite and Quansah considered a safer bet, Alexander-Arnold might have to wait a long time for another chance.

England were so good that the fact Declan Rice was sat watching the game at home on the sofa was completely forgotten. The Arsenal midfielder is the spine of Tuchel's team, yet his withdrawal has proven to be a blessing in disguise, allowing the manager to take a look at other options.

Having seen Myles Lewis-Skelly in previous games, Bournemouth's Alex Scott got the nod in Croatia. While it was the front four who took the headlines, Scott looked completely at home on his first start for his country, with his confident, smooth playing style fitting nicely into England's intensity. He won the ball back high up the pitch on a few occasions and set the ball rolling for Kane's opener with a crisp pass into Bellingham.