England beat Serbia 5-0 to stay top of World Cup qualifying

England produced a statement performance in Belgrade on Tuesday, routing Serbia 5-0 in a World Cup qualifying match that left the Three Lions within touching distance of next year's finals. Harry Kane opened the scoring at the Rajko Mitic Stadium in the 33rd minute and Noni Madueke added a second two minutes later; further goals from Ezri Konsa, Marc Guehi and Marcus Rashford completed a dominant evening for Thomas Tuchel's side.

Tuchel's team controlled much of the match from the outset, opening opportunities early and building pressure until Kane headed in from Declan Rice's corner. Madueke — making his case for a regular role in Tuchel's forward line — finished a rapid move to make it 2-0 before half-time. England extended their advantage after the break when Anthony Gordon's long-range effort was spilled by goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic and Konsa reacted quickest to tap in. The match turned decisively in England's favour when Serbia captain Nikola Milenkovic was sent off in the 72nd minute for a foul on Kane, and Rice's resulting free kick found Guehi to make it 4-0. A VAR review late on awarded a penalty after Ollie Watkins went down in the box and Rashford converted to seal...