“MY time has come and gone. Some good games, some bad games. That’s the story of my England career.”

And so a record-breaking chapter in England’s footballing history has finally reached its end. More than 18 months after he announced his departure from the international scene, Wayne Rooney has returned to centre stage to take his final bow. To say there was not a dry eye in the house would be stretching it, but this was a night when an otherwise unremarkable friendly against the United States was transformed into an emotional celebration of a player who has etched his name into the record books.

England’s greatest? Surely not. A player who made the most of his natural talent? Even that is up for debate. But in terms of sheer weight of goals, Rooney outscored every England player that came before or after him. That statistic alone makes him worthy of respect and recognition.

His appearance from the bench in the 57th minute of last night’s game earned the biggest cheer of the evening – certainly more raucous than the reaction that greeted England’s first-half goals from Jesse Lingard and Trent Alexander-Arnold or a second-half strike from Callum Wilson – and while the closest he came to adding to his tally of 53 goals was a last-minute shot that Brad Guzan saved to his left, he left the pitch with the broadest of smiles.

All in all, the night could hardly have gone better. England warmed up for Sunday’s Nations League decider against Croatia with a facile win, and Gareth Southgate was able to blood some more of his youngsters. Ultimately, though, this was all about Rooney.

The arguments for and against what was effectively a testimonial for England’s all-time record goalscorer have received a wide airing in the last few days, and a personal opinion is that a pre-match presentation would have been sufficient recognition of Rooney’s 14-year international career instead of the additional award of a 120th cap.

That said, however, it is hard to quibble with the extent of the 33-year-old’s contribution to the national cause in the last decade-and-a-half, or the depth of his pride at captaining his country.

A harsh assessment of Rooney’s international career might conclude that he won nothing and scored the vast majority of his goals in matches that did not really matter. That would downplay the thrill of his emergence onto the international scene though, as well as the manner in which he carried the England team during a transitional spell characterised by collective underachievement.

Rooney’s era straddled the gap between the demise of the so-called ‘golden generation’ and the emergence of a group of young players that achieved something special under Southgate this summer. His years were largely fallow ones, but anyone who had the privilege of watching him rampaging his way through the Croatian and Swiss defences at Euro 2004 will thrill at the memory of a teenage tyro appearing from nowhere with the world at his feet.

He never quite hit those heights again, with injuries, loss of form and the occasional rush of blood blighting his career, but he remained a consistent goalscorer for the next five tournament cycles and continued to slog his way through a succession of unglamorous qualifying campaigns when others opted for international retirement.

That he scored so many of his goals against the likes of Belarus, Andorra, Bulgaria and San Marino can be used to downplay his achievements, but another interpretation would praise him for consistently retaining the desire to perform against such opponents. To the England fans who followed him to the far-flung corners of Europe, and who serenaded him before, during and after last night’s game, he remained a firm favourite for his longevity and enduring patriotism as much as anything else.

Rooney is, of course, England’s past. The 56 minutes that preceded his introduction in last night’s game were all about the nation’s future with Southgate selecting a starting line-up boasting a combined total of just 94 caps, the fewest of any England side in 38 years.

There were two international debutants from the outset – Lewis Dunk and Wilson – as well as half-time debutant in the shape of Southampton goalkeeper Alex McCarthy and a first start for 18-year-old Jadon Sancho, whose only previous action in an England shirt had come in the final 11 minutes of last month’s Nations League draw in Croatia.

Sancho looked calm and composed from the outset – hardly surprising given that he has been excelling in the Bundesliga with Borussia Dortmund this season – but it was Wilson who was at the heart of the early action as England dominated the first half.

The Bournemouth striker fluffed an excellent opportunity to open his international account when he failed to get a proper connection to Lingard’s cross despite being completely unmarked on the edge of the six-yard box, but was unfortunate not to win a penalty just a minute later.

Lingard’s through ball sent Wilson scampering into the box, and while he was probably looking to go down as Guzan raced from his line to meet him, there was definite contact between the goalkeeper and centre-forward. Referee Jesus Gil Manzano awarded a goal kick, but should have pointed to the spot.

No matter. England suffered a brief scare when Michael Keane’s hesitancy afforded Christian Pulisic a clear run on goal, with Jordan Pickford coming to his side’s rescue as he blocked the midfielder’s shot, but the hosts’ incisive attacking enabled them to cause problems whenever they made it into their opposition’s final third.

The American defence – sorry, defense – was rocking, and England took full advantage with two goals in the space of three first-half minutes.

Lingard scored the first in delightful fashion, receiving the ball from Dele Alli close to the corner of the penalty area before opening up his body to curl an arcing finish beyond Guzan’s left hand.

Alexander-Arnold, another of England’s emerging young guns, claimed the second, surging on to Sancho’s lay-off before drilling a low finish across Guzan and into the far corner of the net.

That was really that until Rooney came on, with the returning hero replacing Lingard and taking up an attacking position on the right-hand side. He curled a shot at Guzan, played a wonderful through ball that almost sent Ruben Loftus-Cheek galloping clear, and had a hand in England’s third goal that capped their night.

Rooney spread play to the left, Fabian Delph delivered a low cross into the middle, and Wilson stole ahead of his marker to steer home a front-post volley.