As 2018 gets underway there is something rather unexpected about the Premier League. Something few of us anticipated. Something different. And something which, experience tells us, we really shouldn’t be talking about.

But the fact is, as World Cup year begins, among the best players in the division are a growing number of Englishmen. Harry Kane can’t stop accumulating hat-tricks, Raheem Sterling increasingly resembles a Brazilian in his skill and endeavour, while Jesse Lingard is on sparkling form, scoring magnificent, cheeky, fun-fuelled goals on a weekly basis.

Add in the growing authority of John Stones, the pace and strength of Kyle Walker, the return to prominence of Jack Wilshere and Adam Lallana and suddenly things are looking rather rosy. Or rather, if you are an England fan, looking primed for disappointment.

It has only taken 24 years, but it finally appears as if the Premier League is doing what it is supposed to do. One of its founding principles was to improve the quality of the England team. It was a promise that rather got lost in the scramble for immediacy, as clubs sought ascendancy by buying in talent from around the world rather than develop from within. For the past couple of decades, it has been hard to see how club sides featuring nine, 10 or ever more frequently 11, foreign players were supporting national aspirations.