Saka: Seven-goal demolition of Croatia ‘everything England were looking for’

Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.

Bukayo Saka said England’s performance against Croatia was “everything we were looking for”, after they made history with a staggering 7-0 win in Rijeka.

Saka joined Kane in scoring twice, while Anthony Gordon, Jude Bellingham and Morgan Rogers were also on target on a memorable night for Thomas Tuchel’s side.

England’s win was their biggest over a team in the top 50 of the FIFA World Rankings since they were first published in 1992, while it was also the heaviest defeat in Croatia’s history.

Croatia’s previous worst result was a 6-0 Nations League defeat in Spain in 2018, while they had never previously lost a home game by more than a three-goal margin or conceded more than four goals in a match on their own turf, losing 4-1 to England in September 2008.

Kane, Gordon, Bellingham and Saka all scored in the first half, marking the first instance of four different England players netting before half-time in a single game since March 2013, when Frank Lampard, Jermain Defoe, Ashley Young and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain did so in an 8-0 win over San Marino.

England now have six points on the board after three Nations League games, and a victory over Czechia on Tuesday would put them on the brink of qualifying for March’s quarter-finals. 

Speaking to ITV Sport after full-time, Saka praised the Three Lions for their relentless approach and their refusal to take their foot off the gas after half-time.

“It was an amazing night. We came out from the start and we were on top,” he said. “We played with high energy, high spirit and we punished them. 

“We enjoyed that performance. It was special and it was really fun to play in. We played with energy and we were really clinical today, which made the difference.

7-0 – England have recorded their biggest margin of victory against a nation ranked in the top 50 of the FIFA World Rankings (since 1992).

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) October 3, 2026

“Scoring two goals for England is always a nice feeling, so I’m really happy with that.

“I think we showed the hunger, passion and quality that we have. It was a mixture of everything. It’s everything we were looking for, so we’re really proud and we want to finish strongly on Tuesday. 

“There’s still three games left, but that will definitely give us a massive boost in confidence and momentum.”

While Saka scored two right-footed goals in a game for the very first time in his senior career, on his 378th outing for club and country, it was Bellingham who truly stole the show.

He had three assists to go with his goal, becoming the first England midfielder to record four goal involvements in a game since David Platt scored four against San Marino in February 1993.

Bellingham, who was crowned England’s Player of the Year for 2026 last month, created eight chances for team-mates.

No player has ever created more in a single top-tier game in the Nations League.

“He was amazing tonight, to be fair. He deserved to be our Player of the Year and he probably deserves Man of the Match tonight as well,” Saka said of Bellingham.

“He was special. I’m so happy to play with him and to have him in the England team.”

And Saka also heaped praise upon Gordon, who has been directly involved in a goal on each of his last five England appearances (four goals, two assists in total) – in the last 10 years, Kane is the only other player to achieve that feat for the Three Lions.

“He’s another player who’s also on fire in an England shirt,” Saka said. “It’s nice to have players like that around you, putting in performances like tonight.”

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