Croatia silent treatment

GARETH SOuTHGATE spoke after the uEFA Nations League draw about his regret that England’s match against Croatia in October would be played behind closed doors in Rijeka.

Southgate had wanted his young side to experience Croatia’s intimidating home support rather than playing in front of just officials and media as a result of their punishment for having a swastika cut into the pitch for a Euro 2016 qualifier.

Croatia fans, occupying just one area in the Luzhniki Stadium, were very noisy during the semi-final and that sound would have been amplified 10-fold by a full house in Zagreb or Split. ENGLAND players who spend time in the stands with their friends and family immediately after a match irritate FIFA to an extent, but not nearly as much as the Brazil team when they spend two hours in their dressing room after World Cup games, where they eat their post-match dinner as soon as possible to aid recovery.