ROME -- Tournament knockout matches involving England are not supposed to be like these. It was a remarkable departure from the past for a country that is used to nervous-shredding nights with narrow margins that often end in agonising defeat. Gareth Southgate's team won a 4-0 victory over Ukraine in Rome.Three years ago, there was an almost identical feeling at the 2018 World Cup stage when England beat Sweden by 2-0. However, that afternoon didn't have the same serenity. It felt fragile back then. England's performance was not the result of Southgate, but this group of players felt at home at this rarified level and delivered on their many statements of intent. Harry Kane was even more impressed.After a subdued performance that caused speculation about whether England should continue to use him as their attack leader, the Tottenham Hotspur striker was replaced in England's first game against Croatia. After 72 minutes, he was replaced by the Tottenham Hotspur striker in England's opening game against Croatia. He had a brace, UEFA Star of the Match award, and one eye on a late run for the Golden Boot.Kane was able to get off to a winning start in this tournament's last-16 victory over Germany before he thought back on how difficult it was for him to maintain his form at 2018 World Cup. He still finished as the top goal scorer.Fixtures and bracketHe said that he felt like in Russia, he started on fire and scored lots of goals. However, he also admitted that despite having my best performances in the semis and quarters, a few things happened. "So, going into this, physically, was I trying to ensure that I was peaking at just the right time? We won't know until Tuesday evening if that's true, but that's how I feel it's going."Now we know. It was a hot night in Rome, with temperatures hovering around 25 degrees Celsius at 9 p.m. local kickoff. A quick start was crucial. England played aggressively, squeezed their opponents, and scored in four minutes.Kane completed the move with a smart finish and run, but Raheem sterling made it happen. Harry Maguire extended the play to Sterling. Luke Shaw's underlapping run attracted an Ukraine defender away. This allowed Sterling to run infield, bounce off Mykola Shaparenko's challenge and slip a fantastic ball through to Kane.Sterling, the England winger who bore the brunt for England's poor performance five years ago, declared himself "the hated" at Euro 2016. After an underwhelming domestic season with Manchester City, Sterling was also criticised before the tournament. He was the fall guy for the fans who hoped to see Phil Foden and Jack Grealish in England's starting line-up.Southgate stated after the match that "teams must go on a bit more of a journey" and that they sometimes have to experience some pain in order to move forward. We've had many great nights, but also some difficult nights. All of these experiences have helped us to learn. This has helped us to prepare for another tournament, prepare for individual games, understand each other, and recognize that moments such as tonight are not about going backwards. We wanted to seize the chance rather than hoping that we would win or allow fate to have its say. "I thought the players were determined and ruthless throughout the night."Sterling, along with Kane is now certain to be the first name on Southgate’s team sheet. He was simply not able to manage him and he made a formidable team with Shaw on the left flank. Jadon Sancho in his first meaningful minutes of finals justifies his surprise selection on right with Bukayo Saka out due to injury.Jose Mourinho had harshly criticised Shaw during their time at Manchester United, and this summer when Shaw was working as a pundit on a UK radio station. In an interview last weekend, Shaw responded with "Hopefully he can make peace with that and finally stop worrying about him" -- and then he continued his pitch performance with two outstanding performances against Germany and Ukraine.Minutes after the end of half-time Shaw provided a fantastic set piece for Maguire, allowing him to send a header past Georgiy Bushchan, Ukraine goalkeeper. It almost went in the net. Although Maguire was not selected in Southgate's 26-man final squad due to his ankle injury, it was widely questioned. However, he has improved in stature since then.Shaw again delivered four minutes later, picking Kane unmarked at close range to head his second goal. Kane played 463 minutes for England, without scoring a goal. Kane now has three goals in two games for England and his total in major tournaments is nine. This puts him one behind Gary Lineker's record of 10.Kane stated, "Whenever you're playing you want it to be your best and you try to become the best." Major tournaments are huge for our country and for our nation. They are a great way to get involved. It would be wonderful. Gary was an incredible player and a great English striker.Three goals have been scored by Harry Kane in England's Euro 2020 semi-finals run. Valerio Pennicino – UEFA/Getty Images"If I can score one or two goals in the next game, it will hopefully help us get to the final." As I have said, the group stage is where I am now. It's about helping the team as much possible as a striker. I hope to score more goals if scoring goals is my goal.Just before England's fourth, Kane experienced a moment that showed confidence.Oleksandr Karvaev's looping defensive header fell to the 27 year-old at the box's edge. He hit a fierce, left-foot volley which Bushchan brilliantly tipped wide. Jordan Henderson, who was able to turn the corner from the result, joined the ranks of those who defied pre-tournament scepticism.Maguire was also questioned about his fitness. He had not played for Liverpool since February 20th after groin surgery. Maguire was also questioned by Liverpool. Maguire appeared to have broken team protocol by missing a penalty in England's final warm-up match last month. He was accused of trying to score his first England goal in desperate circumstances. He denied the claim, and even said that he believed the goal would come soon. He saved the money for a Euros quarterfinal and headed home to Mason Mount's corner in the 63rd minute -- his maiden international strike being in his 62nd cap.Southgate was able protect two of four yellow card-carrying players. Declan Rice, Kalvin Phillips, Kane and Shaw were then substituted. It was in many ways the perfect night.England has had some useful advantages in these finals, it must be stated. It is a strange coincidence that all four semifinalists were able to play their group-stage games at the same place. This felt like a loss for Ukraine, who needed 120 minutes to defeat Sweden on Tuesday.Rarely has England experienced such conviction and, more importantly, such comfort. The 50-year old's shift in mindset and strong work ethic fueled their self-assurance.Before this week, England had never won a Euros knockout game in less than 90 minutes. They have defeated Germany and scored four goals in a knockout match for the first time since 1966 World Cup final.Kane's leadership is a great help to this team.
