The latest England-Croatia sequel delivers so much more than just another mundane spin-off

It might still have been barely existential in comparison to the cauldron in Kazan, and rarely even exceeded the decibels of Croatia’s closed-door dungeon in Rijeka until its closing sequence, but this match was always about more than a summer siesta in the Algarve.

A plot line so obvious that it had already revealed its villains in the introduction. A sequel which revolved around just one objective: extricating the torment of the Luzhniki.

Gareth Southgate’s pre-match parables centred on how England had improved since that regrettable day in Russia. There, they had surpassed their own expectations. Now, after such a thrilling interlude against Spain, they were a blockbuster, amped by added ammunition, with more to prove.

Yet, it was only fitting that this sequel started with so many shared adages to its predecessor. Like an anaemic Star Wars spin-off, it teased with a sliver of something more, yet consistently fell back on what had come before.

A newly casted midfield which sprung about in the same fashion: dominating possession, first to the loose ball, careering into tackles while attempting to breach Croatia's press.

But there was already something extra in this rendition. England weren’t prodding hopelessly in search of gaps which weren’t there. They weren’t wrought by angst and adrenaline that always left their timing but a fraction out of kilter.

They sprinted out of the starting gates like a stallion on derby day, sustaining a pace which Croatia simply couldn’t keep up with. In fact, in the first 20 minutes, Croatia scarcely had a touch of the ball. Raheem Sterling and Marcus Rashford scything behind their opponent’s high-press with precision rather than crude head-down horsepower.

Even Jordan Pickford’s early mishap, almost gifting a goal to Andrej Kramaric, couldn’t unsettle England like it might have done in the summer. Domagoj Vida, Croatia’s rugged barricade who made even a man-bun seem masculine in Russia, was shellshocked by the speed. Caught on his heels as opposed to when playing like an an NFL linebacker against England’s set-piece ploys.

Yet it only amounted to a half-time position that followed a script already written. The trauma and toil of Kazan unavoidably lingering, bubbling at the back of the mind after a failing to reap reward from the first-half. Ebbing into that same stygian stream and towards that same twist in the tale.

So by the time Kramaric's goal turned the tide of a game England might have already killed off, it felt nothing short of the inevitable.

After all, this was never a test of whether Croatia could capitalise on a single decisive opportunity to snatch a result as they did in Russia. Nor if England would present them with such an offering as they did here during that second-half blip of concentration. That we already knew would come. Instead, it centred on whether Southgate's side could indeed show the improvement and the mettle to match the manager's opening premonition. Whether England could rid themselves of old demons or remain a side shackled by them.

And for the 20 minutes following it certainly felt like the latter. A buzz of collective sighs as hope slowly seeped from the stands. The players becoming evermore desperate as they trowelled for spaces which weren't there and lurched for the long-ball out of desperation.

So in true LA fashion, by the time Jesse Lingard bustled home the equaliser you no longer expected it. The suspense had already peaked and started to wane away, wilting towards another doomed plotline. Just another sequence which captured your money and emotion, only to spit it back out.

It was a moment of catharsis. Finally, England broke free from Croatia's spell. The pain of the summer finally dispelled from the subconscious and Gareth Southgate's side played as if they had been freed. From thereon out, as the final 10 minutes dawned, it was almost as if you simply sat back and awaited the cinematic finale.

The denoument where Harry Kane latched on to Ben Chilwell's set-play and, despite all England's improvements on the pitch, they harked back to the warmest moments of Russia when Harry Maguire headed home. It was industriously English. An ending so perfect it could have been pre-written.

And so the closing soundtrack - ‘Football’s Coming Home - played. Kane soaked in the cheers in the centre circle and Luka Modric - Croatia's arch-villain - stooped his head to the floor. A match manufactured in Hollywood itself.