The Dutch fans had been asked for a song all night and, as England imploded in a blaze of defensive calamities, they finally obliged.
Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life.
There were not too many bedraggled England followers who looked in the mood to do just that but, hey, let’s give it a go.
Gareth Southgate can at least re-run the match in front of his defenders in a darkened room and tell them to watch Virgil van Dijk defend.
This is how and when to play out from the back, this is how to identify danger, this is how to be defensively creative without taking obvious risks.
Never mind the John Stones brainstorm that gifted the Dutch the Kyle Walker own goal that took them ahead in extra-time, England only ever looked one moment away from a farcical error.
And that does not just implicate a defensive unit clearly over-rating their own coolness and decision-making.
It infiltrated England ranks all over the park, hence Ross Barkley’s errant back pass for the third from Quincy Promes.
There is playing out of the back when it is clearly the best option and there is playing out of the back for the sake of it.
No-one knows the difference between the two better than the imperious Van Dijk.
Other than he was the captain of the opposition, it is hard to understand why he was routinely jeered by England fans from start to finish.
If he needed any extra motivation, it was certainly provided.
And while Southgate is in the video room with the VVD masterclass, he might invite his midfielders in for an orange tutorial on ball retention and creativity.
Frenkie de Jong was outstanding and elegant, intelligent proof that England are not market leaders in exciting young talent, after all.
No, this was not England’s first-choice midfield and, while he might be a fine character to have around the squad, Fabian Delph’s contribution will surely be limited in the future.
But there was - despite flashes of excellence from Barkley and Declan Rice - still a slightly worrying gap in class between the two midfields.
But how about that bright side of life?
For the hour he was on the pitch - and even though he spurned a good headed chance to put England two up after Marcus Rashford’s first half penalty - Jadon Sancho was inventive and impudent.
Hauling him early seemed a rare mistake from Southgate.
And even though they were clearly struggling for fluency that has been seen in the progression to these Nations League finals, at least England, well, stuck at it.
Indeed, the move that led to the Lingard late effort that was ruled out by VAR on the basis of millimetres was, arguably, the best of the match.
But Holland were thoroughly deserving winners and administers of a fairly brutal reality check.
The reality is that England have made very good progress under Southgate but still have a distance to travel.
The reality is that England have defenders not accomplished enough to Cruyff-turn their way out of trouble in every instance (maybe this was the reason Pep Guardiola’s trust in Stones appears to have dissipated.)
The reality is that the depth of the squad is not as great as some of us might have thought.
The reality is that Southgate will still have to perform a sensational job to win a major tournament.
But if they learn from and react to these realities, they will still be going in the right direction.
Yes, this was a disappointment … but there is still a bright side of life for England to look on.
