In Focus: Five key talking points from England 10-0 Luxembourg

England’s perfect World Cup qualifying campaign came to an impressive end as the Lionesses recorded a 10-0 victory over Luxembourg. 

Georgia Stanway and Bethany England scored a brace each, while Beth Mead and Ella Toone grabbed a goal and two assists apiece. 

Alessia Russo, Rachel Daly, Nikita Parris and Lauren Hemp all also got themselves on the scoresheet. 

We take a look at five key talking points from the Lionesses’ final qualifying fixture.

Big hitters

The 10-0 scoreline England racked up may seem remarkable — but for Sarina Wiegman’s Lionesses, it is bordering on commonplace. 

In this qualifying campaign alone, England have hit double figures on four other occasions. 

They beat Luxembourg by the same scoreline in the reverse fixture and also put 10 past Latvia and North Macedonia away from home. 

The home clash with Latvia saw the Lionesses win an astonishing 20-0 and as a result, they end their qualifying campaign with a remarkable record of 80 goals scored in just 10 outings.

Unbreachable

Despite this game being a dead rubber for England — they had already secured both qualification and top spot in the group — the Lionesses were determined to protect their unblemished defensive record. 

And so they did, not allowing Luxembourg a single shot as they ended their qualifying campaign without conceding a goal. 

It is a feat only Spain can match, though they have played two games fewer than England.

No mercy

Given England’s confirmed status as group winners before kick-off, some expected Wiegman to name an entirely changed line-up against Luxembourg, who are ranked 117th in the world. 

It was not so, however, with regular stars Mead, Russo, Leah Williamson and Lucy Bronze — among others — all included from the start. 

There was a starting berth for Parris, however, who appears to be Russo’s primary competitor for the central striking berth since Ellen White’s retirement.

Rueful Russo

Russo played the part of a supersub as England won the Euros in the summer — and did so with aplomb. 

The 23-year-old’s four goals saw her finish third in the competition’s top scorer charts despite being afforded far fewer minutes than the majority of her competitors and were crucial in the Lionesses’ success. 

White’s departure has left a void that the striker will be keen to fill — though she will feel frustrated with the finishing she displayed against Luxembourg, squandering several clear-cut opportunities despite getting on the scoresheet. 

Russo will hold herself to a higher standard as England’s new first-choice No9 and will need to keep performing to fend off competition from Parris.

Team spirit

Chelsea forward England, 28, hailed the team’s performance and togetherness — reserving particular praise for their cutting edge in front of goal. 

She said: "We knew after a big summer, we had to show up. We did well against Austria and we just wanted to continue that good form. Being clinical in front of goal was the most important thing and we did that. 

"I'm absolutely buzzing. It's a team sport and I could not be prouder to be part of this team so to be able to get two at the end and make it 10, I'm really happy. 

"I know it's tough but we're here together and we fight for each other while we're on the pitch."