England made the perfect start to their 2022 World Cup campaign by thrashing Iran 6-2 on Monday.The Three Lions put the woes of their UEFA Nations League relegation behind them with an emphatic performance that reminded the world just how talented Gareth Southgate's squad truly is.Brazil might be the favourites to go all the way in Qatar, but it's nevertheless telling that it's England who have the most valuable men's international squad on the planet right now.

The talent of England's World Cup squad

With an exciting cocktail of young talents like Bukayo Saka and Jude Bellingham combined with established stars such as Harry Kane and Raheem Sterling, it's not from without the realms of possibility that football could indeed be coming home.

Besides, you only had to look at the players who weren't chosen from the start in the demolition of Iran to see just how much talent Southgate has at his fingertips right now.

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Take, for example, the fact that two Premier League champions in the form of Jack Grealish and Phil Foden had to settle for a place on the bench for England's World Cup curtain-raiser.

Contemporary students of arguably the greatest manager in history, Pep Guardiola, the pair of Manchester City stars would be right up there when it comes to the most technically-gifted players in the squad.

In fact, there are very few nations in Qatar for whom they wouldn't be automatic starters.

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What is Messi and Alves' iconic warm-up routine?

And just in case there were any questions marks over what they can do with a football at their feet, then they were completely and utterly extinguished by a superb clip of the duo balling in England training.

That's because the Three Lions' official social media accounts uploaded footage of Foden and Grealish doing their best impression of Lionel Messi and Dani Alves' legendary Barcelona warm-up.

Video: Messi and Alves' legendary Barcelona warm-up

The aim of the game is to volley the ball to one another with a few keepy-ups in between without it ever hitting the ground, which has also been seen executed to a very high standard by fellow City player Rodri in previous Spain training sessions with Thiago Alcantara.

How did Grealish and Foden get on?

And while Grealish and Foden's effort might not be over a distance as vast as Messi and Alves tried, it's no less impressive as they put on a fabulous showcase of just how talented they are by making it all look so effortless.

Then, just to put the cherry on the cake, Grealish produced a superb 'watch the video until the end' moment that makes it can't-miss viewing, so be sure to check it out down below:

Video: Grealish and Foden show off their talent in England training

Fan reaction

A fan revels in Foden and Grealish's talent.
A fan revels in Foden and Grealish's talent.
A fan revels in Foden and Grealish's talent.
A fan revels in Foden and Grealish's talent.
A fan revels in Foden and Grealish's talent.
A fan revels in Foden and Grealish's talent.
A fan revels in Foden and Grealish's talent.

Just close your eyes and imagine for a second that you're attempting to pull off the same feat with your mates at the park. Let's face it, it would be an absolute disaster.

While, yes, some fans might roll their eyes that it's only in training and there's no pressure on them, but that's besides the point, what's so brilliant about the clip is how it illustrates so effectively how talented the best players in the world truly are.

You can easily watch a World Cup match and struggle to quantify it because there's no equivalent for a Sunday League footballer, but the Messi-Alves stunt is something that everyone can have a go at and, well, Foden and Grealish would wipe the floor with pretty much everyone.

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GiveMeSport World Cup 2022 promo image featuring Kylian Mbappe, Neymar Jr, Cristiano Ronaldo, Harry Kane and Lionel Messi

After all, such is Grealish's utter mastery of the ball by catching it between his legs at the end that it frankly looks like some CGI mastery out of a Nike or Adidas commercial.

So whatever happens for Grealish, Foden and England over the coming days and weeks for Qatar, we can all rest assured knowing that the talent and quality in the camp is through the roof.


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