England's two goalless draws against Germany and Brazil last November dampened expectations, but in retrospect can be viewed as a line in the sand and an important source of stability.

In the following 12 months, Gareth Southgate's England reached their first tournament semi-final since 1996, won a penalty shootout, vanquished a major nation on their own turf, changed system twice and reduced the squad's average age to one of the youngest in world football.

England's comeback victory over Croatia at Wembley also sent them through to the inaugural Uefa Nations League finals in Portugal next summer.

Scoring more goals from open play and settling on a new midfield balance remain targets for the future, but the last year has been undeniably positive.

Here we track England's progress in five important areas.