Captain Gerrard praises, warns England teammates
SAO PAULO — At England’s beachside hotel in Rio de Janeiro, captain
Steven Gerrard tried to raise the spirits of his demoralized teammates.
They weren’t outplayed by Italy in their World Cup opener — far from it — but go into Thursday’s game against Uruguay with zero points in Group D.
Addressing the squad, Gerrard told the players to be “really proud of the effort and commitment.” But the 112-cap veteran also delivered a warning: Lose against Uruguay, and they are bound to be back on the plane to England next week.
“Realize it could be a terrible, long, frustrating summer if we don’t get it right on Thursday,” Gerrard, 34, said he told the team Sunday night. “There is no hiding place for a player when you go out of a tournament.
“You go home earlier than you expect. It can be tough as a player, and it can take an awful long time to get over it.”
Gerrard, a midfielder for Liverpool, knows that only too well, having never progressed further than the quarterfinals at two World Cups and two European Championships with England.
“It wasn’t a message to scare any of the lads, but a wake-up call to everyone in the room — staff, players,” Gerrard said. “That is the reality of where we are, and we need everyone focused and right on it to perform individually and collectively on Thursday.”
In the meantime, coach Roy Hodgson said midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (knee) is not fit to play against Uruguay.
Van Persie, Cahill must sit
Robin van Persie and Tim Cahill have scored contenders for goal of the tournament.
But each will miss his team’s last Group B match.
Cahill scored a stunning volley Wednesday to equalize in the 21st minute of Australia’s 3-2 loss to the Netherlands in Porto Alegre before being booked just short of halftime for a late challenge on Bruno Martins Indi, his second yellow card of the tournament.
The Netherlands’ Van Persie, who scored a memorable looping header against Spain last week and added his third goal of the tournament in the second half against Australia, was booked shortly after halftime for putting his hand in the face of Matthew Spira- novic.
Two yellow cards in group play mean an automatic one-game suspension for the next match.
Messi fan too devoted
A Brazilian man who invaded the pitch at Argentina’s public training session last week was arrested Wednesday as he tried to enter the team camp in Belo Horizonte.
Police said the man, who identified himself as
Denis Andre Oliveira, 33, was arrested for trespassing.
With tears streaming down his cheeks, he told reporters outside the Cidade do Galo sports facility that all he wanted was
Lionel Messi’s autograph on his Argentina shirt.
On June 11, the man ran up to Messi at the end of an open training session in Belo Horizonte and shined his shoes before he was led away by security.
Beware: Cabbies drive distracted
Don’t text and drive. But how about don’t watch the match and drive?
Many Brazilian cab drivers are watching the World Cup games on the screens on top of their dashboards normally used to display GPS maps. With the heavy traffic of Sao Paulo and limited parking in the tourist and business districts, it’s the only way they get to watch.