Hansen's England verdict

BBC Sport's Alan Hansen gives his verdict on Sven Goran Eriksson's first game in charge of England.

Sven Goran Eriksson's reign got off to the perfect start at Villa Park thanks to an impressive all-round display from England.

It was a new-look team and they can draw many positives from the performance, the formation and - most importantly - the result.

Spain began the game purposefully but faded away as the likes of Paul Scholes, Nicky Barmby and Andy Cole took a grip on the game.

Once England had gone ahead, there was only ever one side who were going to win the game - Jose Antonio Camacho's side just seemed to cave in.

England's nightmare in Helsinki in October must not be completely forgotten as it could easily happen again next month

  Alan Hansen

If England can punish teams in World Cup qualifiers in the same way that they punished Spain on Wednesday then they will qualify for the 2002 finals.

The 4-4-2 formation worked superbly and, unlike in Euro 2000, England weren't overrun in midfield.

Sol Campbell, Ugo Ehiogu, Chris Powell and Michael Ball all excelled in defence.

The entire midfield played immaculately throughout and Emile Heskey transferred his club form onto the international stage without any real problem.

Perhaps, the only negative aspect from the game was Eriksson's decision to play Heskey on the right wing.

Too many England managers have failed by playing people in the wrong position.

Heskey is a world class player who deserves to be picked in his best position.

New dawn

But good performances from Andy Cole and Michael Owen will certainly increase the competition for places in the attack.

However, before everyone starts to get too excited, it is important to remember that this was just a friendly match.

The real work begins on 24 March against Finland at Anfield.

England's nightmare in Helsinki in October must not be completely forgotten because a repeat could easily be on the cards again next month.

But, having met Eriksson in Rome, I'm confident he won't get carried away by this result and will treat the next two games with the respect they deserve.

On this display, you would expect six points for England - let's just hope this is the start of a successful era for English football.