Inside the camp that turned team into heroes
CHIEF FOOTBALL CORRESPONDENT in St Petersburg the quarter-final. Southgate is keen his team are given the chance to enjoy each moment.
There are no cliques – the closest to one being the strong bond between the Spurs contingent and the Manchester United pair of Jesse Lingard and Marcus Rashford who, Southgate has joked, are so close he half expects them to walk into a room arm in arm.
Yesterday was the earliest the squad had returned to Repino following their matches at this World Cup: in Volgograd, Nizhny Novgorod, Kaliningrad, Moscow and, now, in Samara having beaten Sweden to earn a place in the semi-finals. Previous ties had seen the players walk back into the hotel, where breakfast is laid out for those not feeling able to go straight to bed, as late as 6.30am.
The relatively early return from Samara – an hour was gained as a result of the time difference – was a bonus, especially when it came to the rest of yesterday which was a “recovery day” where a pattern has been set by Southgate and his coaching staff to try to get the players ready for the next game.
England have the best injury record of any team at this World Cup – the concerns centre on Jamie Vardy’s groin problem and tightness in Jordan Henderson’s hamstring – and the programme has worked.
There is nothing revolutionary about it although, as with much of England’s training, elements of fun have been introduced: whether it is playing “dodgeball” or shadow boxing as a warm-up session or racing on inflatable unicorns in the hotel pool. There was a yoga session, also, to kick-start the work yesterday in a large tent put out by the side of the hotel. “Everything we’ve done has been based on enjoyment,” Southgate said.
The recovery follows a routine of bike, gym work and pool with the players then given the afternoon off to meet up with their families. This has included the option of heading down to St Petersburg or, interestingly, as has become more common in free time, the families coming up to Repino and then staying on for communal dinner with everyone – staff, players, players’ relatives – mixing together at the hotel.
“I think the recovery comes first, then enjoy the day. The players have got their families, we are going to keep that little tradition we’ve had of them coming in and having dinner with us. I think all of those things have played their part really,” explained Southgate, who spent his day in and out of meetings and preparing to face A motivational book by an American personal trainer appears to have played a role in England’s success. Fabian Delph took
on the flight home for the birth of his child while Danny Welbeck is among the players to have praised its influence. The book is written by Tim S Grover, who has worked with sportsmen including top basketball players such as Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, and examines the traits that took them to the top of their profession. Croatia, examining analysis and scouting reports.
Family has become a key word for England. Southgate even referred to the players as family, as did captain Harry Kane, and there is a genuine sense of togetherness that is helped by the youthfulness of the squad but also the recognition that there are senior players – such as Gary Cahill, Phil Jones and Jordan Henderson – who have acted like “big brothers”.
The Football Association unashamedly said it was going to treat the players as if they were on a glorified school trip, encouraging them to socialise and providing constant entertainment.
Their base has a basketball court, pool tables, table tennis tables, a driving simulator, and video games – a large group play each other at Fortnite. England have the run of the entire spa hotel having booked it for the duration of their stay. They play board and card games such as Uno, which the