In the tunnel on Friday, Wayne Rooney hadn't even had time to wipe the sweat from his brow when he delivered his verdict that Gareth Southgate was in "pole position."
In the press box, Henry Winter signed off his match report for the Times with: "The FA has to appoint him now." In the studio, a consensus was struck between ITV pundits Lee Dixon, Ian Wright, Ryan Giggs and Ally McCoist. He'd done enough.
That beating Scotland 3-0, Malta 2-0 and drawing with Slovenia has convinced the majority Southgate is the obvious choice for the England manager's job is almost as depressing as the fact they're probably right.