Anthony Gordon almost broke the deadlock 78 seconds into the match from a tight angle on the right but was kept out by Karl Darlow's outstretched leg.

From the resulting corner, Morgan Rogers found the breakthrough; Marc Guehi did brilliantly to keep John Stones's nod down in play before pulling it back for the Aston Villa midfielder to guide into the bottom-left corner for his first England goal.

Rogers's club team-mate, Ollie Watkins, then doubled the lead in the 11th minute. Wales failed to clear its lines, and the forward, who replaced the injured Harry Kane in the starting line-up, rifled in from close range after a scramble in the box.

Wales's poor start was compounded 20 minutes in when Bukayo Saka cut inside from the right before curling a stunning effort into the top-left corner.

England almost had a fourth before the break after the impressive Elliot Anderson played a pacey ball across the face of goal, but Watkins blazed wide from yards out before colliding with the post.

Rogers could have had a second after the break, but under pressure from Joe Rodon, he fired against the crossbar before Jordan Pickford did well to keep out David Brooks's low strike at the other end.

Pickford was alert again to push Chris Mepham's header away from goal later on, but that was the closest Wales came, while Gordon saw late chances go begging.

Rogers was delighted to have scored his first England goal.

"It's a proud moment to do it at home too, in a home nation derby. A dream come true," he said.

"The quality of players we have with people here and not here, you can never be too comfortable, or else people will take your role."

Tuchel was impressed by Rogers's display, with the midfielder also hitting the crossbar for England early in the second half as it tried to add to their advantage.

"He is what he is," Tuchel said. "He is a number 10, and he is competing for his place. He is in a good way.

"We are ready for any team effort. Serbia was the next example of teamwork. We created a lot of chances.

"We could use Harry [Kane] all the time, but we need to play without Harry and Jude [Bellingham] – the guys are injured. I think we played an excellent first half."

Saka was particularly impressed by how his team-mates are buying into Tuchel's approach and is looking forward to what they can do.

"I feel like a team with a lot of spirit," Saka said. "I can see what the manager is building.

"You can see the healthy competition he is creating. Every time we train and play, everyone gives their best.

"We are building something good, and it is exciting to be part of it. I feel we're progressing and going in the right direction under him."

England is back in FIFA World Cup qualifying action next week, with a trip to Latvia on Wednesday (AEDT), where it could seal its place in next year’s tournament, if other results go its way over the weekend.