Andriy Shevchenko believes England's quality on set pieces and an injury to Serhiy Kryvtsov was at the centre of Ukraine's undoing in their Euro 2020 quarter-final defeat.
Harry Maguire headed home Luke Shaw's free-kick 60 seconds into the second half following Harry Kane's opener after just four minutes in Rome.
The England captain then scored again before the Three Lions' 4-0 victory was wrapped up by Jordan Henderson, who scored his first international goal after heading home Mason Mount's corner.
Centre-back Kryvtsov went off injured to be replaced by Viktor Tsyhankov in the first half when Ukraine were just one goal down, but matters only got worse for them following his departure from the field of play.
And former Chelsea and AC Milan star Shevchenko was left to rue the 30-year-old's injury, while insisting England's potential from dead-ball situations made it a very difficult evening for his side.
'We know this England team is very strong,' Shevchenko said after the match. 'I think today, especially the result, was very difficult for us because we conceded a lot of set pieces.
'We lost a player, a central defender for us who is very important player on set pieces, and the quality on their corners and the free-kicks England have a lot of potential. It made the difference today.
'England used that one [Shaw free-kick] and the game really changed for us.'
The reverse ended a tournament in which Ukraine have exceeded many expectations, especially after losing two of their three Group C matches.
They qualified for the round of 16 with a third-place finish despite finishing the group stage with a negative goal difference, and then went on to beat 10-man Sweden thanks to Artem Dovbyk's 121st-minute winner at Hampden Park on Tuesday.
And Shevchenko insists he is proud of the way his side played in the tournament and their readiness to fight, insisting reaching the last eight is a 'great result' for the nation.
'The most important thing was we played good football. We fought and the team has played some great games, and for us it is a great result to be in this part of the tournament.
'I am very proud of my players. Next I go home and see my family who I haven't seen for two months. After that we'll see.'