On a bitterly cold day and, with a pitch covered in icy patches, England produced another fine performance to continue their good run. Belgium became the latest victims of the unbeaten home record against continental sides and they ended the match well beaten.

England's recent good form has coincided with the excellent play of two players in particular. Redfern Froggatt and Nat Lofthouse have been superb with Lofthouse especially the outstanding star of the England side.

The Duke of Gloucester was the VIP guest and he, and the rest of the disappointing crowd of 65,000, enjoyed some sparkling football.

England took the lead early on, a familiar pattern, when Tom Finney fed a lovely pass to Lofthouse. He nodded it down to his right foot before crashing a drive against the Belgium crossbar. When the rebound came out, Billy Elliott was on hand to hit a firm shot wide of Boogaerts.

From that moment, England rarely lost control. Playing neat and constructive football they continually split the Belgium defence to set up many chances. Roy Bentley missed, so did Finney but, shortly before half-time, the deserved second goal duly arrived. It was a real beauty.

Redfern Froggatt made another good break, this time down the left. When his centre came over, Finney and Bentley combined well to set up Lofthouse. Again, he fired in a fierce shot, which this time went in off the crossbar.

Six minutes into the second half, England emphasised their dominance with a third goal. This time Finney sent Bentley away down the left. He carefully measured a lovely cross into the middle where Lofthouse's challenge forced Boogaerts to fumble, allowing Elliott the chance to shoot home from close range as the ball fell loose.

It was all England now and on the hour they scored again. Redfern Froggatt, who had already missed several good chances including a sitter just previously, this time made no mistake when he headed home Finney's free-kick perfectly.

Apart from the occasional break from the hard working Coppings and Mermans, Belgium had little to offer although it must be said that England's defence held together brilliantly to emphasise what a good team performance it had been.

With the second half being played in driving sleet, the conditions were awful but nonetheless the football certainly warmed the crowd. Belgium did make a spirited rally towards the end and at last gave Gil Merrick something to warm him up. But the final word had to come from the man Lofthouse.

He rose superbly to head in Bentley's precise cross to round off a fine performance and another excellent result.
  

Nat Lofthouse kept up his one-man bombardment with a double strike that took his haul to nine goals in five games. Redfern Froggatt scored his first goal for England, and Burnley winger Billy Elliott netted twice against the outplayed Belgians. The game was played in a driving sleet, and ice patches formed on the famous Wembley turf, making it difficult for defenders to keep their feet. England led 2-0 at the end of a first-half in which they might have had half a dozen goals against a completely outplayed Belgian team.
  

Belgium had appeared at Wembley twice before in unofficial internationals. England had never failed to beat them at home but had lost 3-2 in Brussels in 1936. Belgium had not competed in the 1950 World Cup. England took the lead in only the fourth minute. Lofthouse hit a thunderous shot against the bar and Billy Elliott scored from the rebound.
Just before the interval Finney and Bentley neatly prised open the Belgian defence and Nat Lofthouse unleashed another powerful shot which this time went in off the bar. Three minutes after the break, from a Bentley cross, Lofthouse challenged Boogaerts and Elliott slotted in his second. The fourth came after an hour with Redfern Froggatt heading in a Finney free kick. Lofthouse scored the fifth with a header from Bentley's cross.
  

A fortnight later England appeared at Wembley again with an unchanged team, and its form confirmed that what had been seen against Wales was no flash in the pan. Belgium were not of the same mettle as Wales, but 10 goals at Wembley in a fortnight speaks very much for itself.
Belgium were outpaced and outmanoeuvred on a frozen surface and in driving sleet. They played neatly but too close; yet in the last quarter hour they rallied sufficiently to give Merrick a warming. Finney was perhaps the best of the forwards, but it was the culture of Froggatt (R.) at inside-left and Lofthouse's leadership in the middle that made for the smooth flow of England's attack, its penetration and finishing power. England went ahead in the third minute when a shot from Lofthouse almost splintered the Belgian cross-bar. The rebound came to Elliott and he shot home. Then just before half-time another thunderbolt from Lofthouse went in via the underside of the bar. Elliott scored England's third soon after half-time, Froggatt (R.) headed home Finney's free-kick to make it four, and Lofthouse, with all the time in the world, picked his spot to head in a precise centre from Bentley to make it five.

Domestic Football Results (26 November 1952)
FA Cup First Round Replays: Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic 2 Ipswich Town 2ᴭᵀ    Dean Court, Bournemouth (7,294) Rees OG, Cross ~ Elsworthy, Garneys Gillingham 3 Wellington Town 0    Priestfield Stadium, Gillingham (7,383) Scarth, Forrester, Long Reading 1 Crystal Palace 3    Elm Park, Reading (8,167) Brooks ~ Fell (2), Rainford Wimbledon 0 Walthamstow Avenue 3    Plough Lane, Wimbledon (2,500) Lewis (2), Bailey		Walthamstow expertly dispatched fellow Isthmian League club, Wimbledon from the competition and went on to become the first amateur club to reach the FA Cup fourth round in 24 years. They had won the FA Amateur Cup at Wembley, seven months earlier, and would go on to win the Isthmian League Championship, but their greatest claim to fame came in holding the reigning Football League Champions, Manchester United to a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford in the fourth round, before succumbing to a 5-2 replay defeat at Highbury.