Jordan Pickford has become the first goalkeeper to keep five clean sheets across the first five games of a European Championships, after England s 4-0 rout of Ukraine.
Harry Kane scored either side of Harry Maguire s brilliant header before Jordan Henderson s first England goal – on his 62nd cap – sealed an emphatic quarter-final triumph in Rome.
England now head back to Wembley for a semi-final clash with Denmark, who defeated the Czech Republic, on Wednesday, with a first appearance in a final since 1966 in the offing.
While England s attack clicked, it is the Three Lions defensive resilience which has seen them through, with Saturday s win bringing up their seventh clean sheet in a row.
It is the first time England have gone as many games without conceding a goal, with the run totalling 662 miniutes.
Five of those clean sheets have come at the tournament – no side has ever kept five successive shut-outs to start a Euros campaign.
Pickford, who had a difficult 2020-21 season with Everton, especially in the first half of the campaign, has played every minute.
Given his troubles for his club, doubts had been raised over Pickford s suitability for England s number one jersey, with Burnley s Nick Pope, who underwent surgery and missed out on Gareth Southgate s squad, and Manchester United s Dean Henderson raised as alternative options.
Yet Southgate kept faith with the former Sunderland goalkeeper, who has made nine saves from a total of 42 shots faced (including blocks) so far at Euro 2020.
Four of his saves have come from attempts inside the area, including a chance for Ukraine s Roman Yaremchuk early on in Saturday s encounter, while the other five have come from long-range efforts.
As it was in the run to the 2018 World Cup semi-finals, Pickford s distribution has also been a key factor for England. He has recorded 95 successful passes, with three of those ending in the final third, from 147 attempts, while he has found a team-mate with 32 long passes (as defined by Opta).
There was a nervy moment for Pickford in the second half at Stadio Olimpico, when he sliced an attempted clearance, but England s defence spared his blushes.
The 27-year-old may face an altogether tougher test against Denmark, however, with Kasper Hjulmand s team having scored 11 goals so far at Euro 2020. Only Spain, who play Italy in the other semi-final, have managed more (12).