ENGLAND’S perfect set of penalties was no accident, according to their players and staff.

The five from five record was the result of careful practice, mental preparation and the help of a former top Dutch striker.

Speaking after England’s dramatic quarter-final win, Jude Bellingham pinpointed the influence of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink for helping England’s spot-kick stars set up a semi with the Netherlands.

Former Chelsea and Leeds star Hasselbaink, 52, joined Gareth Southgate’s backroom staff as an assistant coach in March last year.

The 23-cap Holland striker, who was a lethal finisher in his day, played a key role in preparing England’s takers in Saturday’s shoot-out victory over the Swiss – teeing up a last-four clash with his nation.

Bellingham, who stroked home the second of England’s five perfect penalties, told 5 Live: “I was really confident in my preparation and the things I’d talked through with Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.

“He’s stepped up for us massively.

“It’s the work he does behind closed doors with the lads willing to take on that information that put us in those situations to be able to win.”

Southgate spoke glowingly after the game of his five takers – Cole Palmer, Bellingham, Bukayo Saka, Ivan Toney and Trent Alexander-Arnold – as well as goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, who saved Switzerland’s first spot-kick from Manuel Akanji, despite not being able to follow his “usual process”.

All of England’s quintet of takers finished with aplomb as the Three Lions showed their practice and preparation had paid off.

Palmer, fresh off the back of scoring ten penalties in ten for Chelsea nonchalantly struck the ball into the net to open before Bellingham’s stuttered run up sent the keeper the wrong way for his.

Saka, who was England’s brightest spark in normal and added time then bravely dispatched England’s third, banishing the painful memories of his miss in the Euro 2020 final against Italy.

Toney’s fourth then stunned everyone as he took a no-look penalty in which he did not break eye contact with the Swiss keeper.

The Brentford striker utilised his trademark two-step run up – which it was revealed he honed last summer with a coach in the US.

Bob Jeffrey, a goalkeeping director at Tennessee Soccer Club revealed the two honed a technique that saw Toney practice from 13 yards rather than 12.

Speaking to The Times, Jeffrey explained: “[His training] was fascinating to watch.

“Because in practice he takes them from 13 yards, not 12 yards.

“I asked him: ‘Ivan, why are you taking them from 13 yards?’ He said, ‘Well, when it comes to a game, and I take them from 12 yards, the goal looks bigger.’”

He added that Toney piles pressure on himself in training to help him prepare for the big moments and said: “But the thing that impressed me most was the detail in everything [Toney] did. He never went through the motions. It was like every single shot was to win the World Cup.”

The crucial final penalty fell to Trent Alexander-Arnold, on as a sub in the 115th minute purely to take a pen, to finish it off for England.

Alexander-Arnold’s strike looked like one of his free-kicks, whipped across his body into the top left corner.