There is no denying it, England did the business and then some in their second game of the 2018 World Cup this afternoon.
Although Gareth Southgate's team is certain to come against tougher opponents than Panama, it would take a heart of stone not to allow English fans indulge quite such a convincing win.
Easy. Easy. Easy.
— Gary Lineker 💙💛 (@GaryLineker) June 24, 2018
This is getting silly. Last time England scored 4 or more goals in a World Cup was the 1966 WC final.
— Gary Lineker 💙💛 (@GaryLineker) June 24, 2018
Yessssssss!! 👏🏻👏🏻🙋🏼♂🙋🏼♂ #ENGPAN
— Alan Shearer (@alanshearer) June 24, 2018
It's coming home. pic.twitter.com/TfFuSOHVpA
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) June 24, 2018
BOOM! 1-0
BOOM! 2-0
BOOM! 3-0
BOOM! 4-0
BOOM! 5-0.
England, please stop it - we can't cope with football this good from our national team. #EngvPan— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) June 24, 2018
England 🏴 to win the World Cup... 5 up⚽️⚽️⚽️⚽️⚽️ Harry Kane Golden Boot winner 🏆
— Chris Sutton (@chris_sutton73) June 24, 2018
This mob shouldn’t be here. How are teams like Italy & Holland not in this tournament and Panama are. Joke. #WORLDCUP
— Jimmy Bullard (@jimmybullard) June 24, 2018
What on earth is happening here? Feels a long way away from the 0-0 with Algeria in the 2nd game of 2010. Long road ahead but looking good for #England #ENGPAN
— Dan Walker (@mrdanwalker) June 24, 2018
Can’t believe what I’m seeing! Regardless of the opposition this is fucking class !
— Louis Tomlinson (@Louis_Tomlinson) June 24, 2018
Harry Kane same age as Sir Geoff Hurst was in 1966 ... just saying. #eng
— DAVID JONES (@DavidJonesSky) June 24, 2018
Panama in the changing room at half time. "So, gaffer, tell us again how all the kicking and intimidating them early on was going to work?"#ENGPAN
— Danny Baker (@prodnose) June 24, 2018
Fantastic performance from #threelions. Did everything expected, and some.
Slight irritation with their goal and Trippier's thigh, but a very satisfying afternoon, if they don't believe they can at least take done big scalps now, they never will.
Well done @England! 💪🏾— Stan Collymore ❤️🖤 (@StanCollymore) June 24, 2018
While Ilkay Gundogan won't have endeared himself any further to the German fans as he aired his satisfaction with his clubmate's brace.
Those John Stones striker skills ... 👏🏼😁⚽⚽ Three lions on fire today 🔥🦁 #worldcup #ENGPAN
— Ilkay Gündogan (@IlkayGuendogan) June 24, 2018
Although the pace understandably settled in the second-half, Harry Kane did push himself into pole position for the Golden Boot with five goals.
BOOM! 6-0. Hat-trick for Captain Kane. I’m running on superlative empty. 👍👋👋
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) June 24, 2018
Harry Kane leads the Golden Boot race 👏👏
— Chris Sutton (@chris_sutton73) June 24, 2018
Harry Kane scores a World Cup hat-trick and now he's off for a rest. Let's just say he expertly used his heel to beat the goalkeeper there.
— Alasdair Gold (@AlasdairGold) June 24, 2018
Blinding finish from Harry Kane. The first player to score a hat-trick and a brace in consecutive World Cup games since 1986.
— Gary Lineker 💙💛 (@GaryLineker) June 24, 2018
Harry Kane has as many goals in two games at the 2018 World Cup as Lionel Messi has at every World Cup combined.
— The Sportsman (@TheSportsman) June 24, 2018
When Panama did manage to grab their first goal of the World Cup late on to reduce the deficit to 5, there was no shortage of 'good-feelings' from the England fans; prompting Guy Mowbray to suggest the Central Americans will have 'smiles as wide as the Panama Canal.'
Fair play to Panama 🇵🇦👏👏 1st ever World Cup goal⚽️
— Chris Sutton (@chris_sutton73) June 24, 2018
Correction: First time I can recall being chuffed with a goal scored against England as Baloy scores Panama’s first ever World Cup goal.
— Gary Lineker 💙💛 (@GaryLineker) June 24, 2018
Then again, incapable of simply allowing the game to go down as an impressive performance against inferior opponents, they had to go and lose the run of themselves.
After Lineker described the late 2-1 win against Tunisia as 'exceptional', a 6-1 thrashing of Panama was never going to be anything less.
It's coming home
— Liam Gallagher (@liamgallagher) June 24, 2018
I'm saying... pic.twitter.com/NRY9d4lyXF
— Danny Baker (@prodnose) June 24, 2018
"We've been too negative for too many years" - so said Rio Ferdinand as he encouraged Lineker, Shearer and Lampard to embrace the positive nature of what England are doing.
Trying to keep a lid on the team's hopes overall, much of the confidence was directed toward Kane - and, inevitably, how his goal-scoring fares in comparison to Shearer and Lineker.
Across the country, the below scene seems to have played out consistently - cheap beer everywhere.
