England quietly impressed with a 1-0 win over the Netherlands on Friday night and it was Jesse Lingard's first international goal that made the difference.

While Dutch shot stopper Jeroen Zoet won't look back on the goal with much pride, it was a brilliant finish from the Manchester United winger on a promising night in Amsterdam.

The 1-0 victory moved England to an unbeaten run of seven games and newfound confidence going into the Italy game.

Lingard will be hoping to extend his run of form with the Three Lions, too, with his winning goal adding to an already impressive season.

Over the winter months, the 25-year-old embarked on something of a goalscoring spree and has found the net on 13 occasions for the Red Devils this season.

Lingard going from strength to strength this season

Nevertheless, game-time has stalled somewhat in recent weeks with the arrival of Alexis Sanchez disrupting the United front line.

Lingard has gone from a regular starter to competing with a man who, despite struggling, represented a major investment and roll of the dice for the club.

Yet when the opportunities have arisen, Lingard has grabbed them with both hands. The goals may have dried up slightly but his match-winning performance against Chelsea goes to show he hasn't lost a step.

Since Sanchez arrived, Lingard has risen to the challenge 

It's a point that Ian Wright was all too aware of after the Netherlands game, too, with the ITV pundit praising the winger's attitude since the arrival of Sanchez.

"I'm pleased for Jesse, with everything that's been happening to him," Wright remarked.

"He was having a good season up to a point and then Sanchez came in and since then he's worked hard, he gets his chance and he's taken advantage. I'm very pleased for Jesse.

"You would have thought that, with the inclusion of Sanchez to the United side, he would have been deflated by that but he's actually got better and we're seeing that now."

Credit to Wright because he's bang on.

The 25-year-old is often criticised for his large social media presence and jovial persona, but the hard facts are that Lingard has worked admirably hard to improve as much as he has this season.

While his current form may not reach the levels he touched over Christmas, he's showing the elite attitude to give Sanchez, Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial a lot to think about.

It also, of course, bodes well for England going into the World Cup.

Fans shouldn't take too much from victory over a poor Netherlands but Gareth Southgate has a secret weapon in Lingard going into the tournament in Russia. Watch this space.

Do you think Jesse Lingard should start for England this summer? Have your say in the comments section below.