Southgate gave several members of England’s squad who have been on the margins the chance to at least catch his eye.
Eric Dier’s importance was emphasised by his selection as captain in the absence of Kane and deputy Jordan Henderson – but this was not a night he will look back on with satisfaction.
Dier struggled, particularly in the first half, looking off the pace and giving away cheap possession. He did nothing to threaten Henderson’s status as Southgate’s main midfield pivot.
Vardy and Rashford did not do enough to place Raheem Sterling in peril, even though he has gone 22 England games without a goal.
It was also a difficult night for first-choice goalkeeper Pickford, who was largely unemployed in the wins against Tunisia and Panama.
Pickford had only picked the ball out of the net in those games, having no chance with either goal, but here he looked a little ring-rusty and was fortunate to get away with spilling the ball early on when Gary Cahill cleared Michy Batshuayi’s shot off the line.
It was his busiest game in the World Cup so far – and Southgate must hope he will be better for the experience.
Cahill was solid, while Danny Rose and Trent Alexander-Arnold showed Southgate can rely on them – but England’s first-choice World Cup line-up will still have a familiar look against Colombia.
Martinez’s Belgium a huge threat
Martinez made the bizarre, although some would say brutally realistic, claim before kick-off that winning was not his priority in this final group match.
However, he did get the victory to top the group and face Japan in the last 16, and some of the flashes from his team demonstrated the strength he has at his disposal.
This was a Belgium side without Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard, Kevin de Bruyne, Toby Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen, Axel Witsel and Dries Mertens, to name but seven, in their starting line-up.
And yet, when they actually wanted to, they raised their game to a level beyond England.
If Martinez can bring this squad to the right pitch at the right time, this is potentially a World Cup-winning side.
England manager Gareth Southgate:
“I thought the game was a really good test for us. We knew the level was going to be higher than we’ve had even with teams making changes. Belgium had controlled possession in our back third and we found it tough to press, but in terms of chances, we were fairly even.
“I think we’ve learned a lot from the game. It will be a good game to go and review. The objective was a mid-term one. We’ve got everybody time on the pitch and they’re ready to come in, those that hadn’t previously played, and we’ve protected those who had.”