Let's banish all talk of a new England "Golden Generation" - we all know that the last one could not break the 50-year cycle of failure despite containing the likes of Rooney, Liverpool pair Michael Owen and Steven Gerrard, along with Manchester United's "Class Of 92" - David Beckham, Paul Scholes and Philip and Gary Neville.
There is no doubt, though, that there is a growing sense that England manager Hodgson might just be on to something special if he can nurture the current crop to allow them to develop their natural ability.
England's starting line-up had only 161 caps between them in Berlin compared to Germany's 472.
