IT’S THE CELEBRATION GAME

Martinez says England test is NOT important, but do not be fooled by his mind games

BELGIUM, it seems, are not happy, due to the fact that they arrived at their hotel here in Kaliningrad yesterday to discover members of the British Press had already checked in.

They complained it was like having ‘50 foreign spies’ in their midst, and understandably so. Eden Hazard’s croissant consumption will be closely monitored at breakfast.

England were said to have their own problems, with a strip club seemingly situated opposite their digs in an area, Gareth Southgate was informed during last night’s Press conference, that is rather lively. The England manager said he was unable to comment because they had not yet been there, but he was unconcerned, dismissing it with a smile as a typical tournament story — another box ticked in his World Cup bingo game.

Belgium’s apparent dismay did, however, suggest they are taking this evening’s match rather more seriously than some have had us believe these past few days.

Sure, like England they intend to rest players, with their passage to the last 16 already secure. But Thomas Vermaelen insisted last night they did not have any desire to finish second in Group G, even if it would mean their next game is close to their Moscow training base.

‘You cannot go on the pitch to lose,’ he said. ‘If you try to plan your path through the tournament, things will go terribly wrong. It will backfire.’

Roberto Martinez then confused matters, describing this as a ‘celebration game’ and stating that ‘winning is not the priority’. But it sounded like a bluff — pure kidology.

Southgate was playing no such game, stressing the importance of a winning culture and challenging the idea that England are even in a position to plot their path to the latter stages of the competition. As he pointed out, it is 12 years since England won a knockout game at the World Cup.

No, he wants the players he selects to pursue a third group victory for his squad and in Eric Dier, who was alongside him for the pre-match media conference, he certainly has someone committed to giving his all.

Dier must be wounded by barely kicking a ball thus far when he had seemed to be such an important player in Southgate’s side.

He was his captain for the friendlies against Brazil, Germany and Italy, and in some ways an extension of the manager on the pitch.

At the time, Southgate spoke about the Tottenham midfielder having a ‘good tactical understanding on the field’, adding that he could also be a a ‘good sounding board’ for him.

It was quite the compliment and a further endorsement of a footballer who impressed Southgate some years ago when he requested that he be omitted from the Under 21 squad because he was struggling with his form. Southgate thought it refreshing that Dier was so honest.

Trust has developed between player and manager, and one imagines Dier’s chances of playing a more significant part in the tournament will be enhanced by a rise in the quality of the opposition.

Get as far as a quarter-final with Brazil, and two holding midfielders — Dier and Jordan Henderson — is sure to be an option for Southgate. It could the same in the last 16 too.

‘Eric Dier is always a big part of our plans,’ said Southgate. ‘He is a really intelligent player, tactically very aware. He is a crucial part of our squad and has been all the way through our journey.

‘ His mentality has been about playing his way into the tournament, recognising he will have a part to play. There is a real maturity about him and I enjoy our discussions about the matches we play.

‘He has great insight into the difficulties we might face, so even though he hasn’t been in the starting team he has had invaluable contributions in meetings and training sessions, and tomorrow he is back in the team.’

Asked to express his disappointment at starting on the bench against Tunisia and Panama, Dier gave a mature, dignified response.

‘Obviously not just myself but the 12 players who aren’t playing, it is only natural we want to play,’ he said. ‘It is normal, it is one of the reasons we get to where we do, because we have a competitive nature.

‘The mentality of the players who have not been in the starting XI has been to keep working to the best of our ability.’

That means trying to win, trying to help Harry Kane strengthen his pursuit of the Golden Boot, and proving to themselves that they are capable of beating more technically advanced sides. As Southgate said: ‘We can’t consider ourselves a top team until we start to beat those top teams.’

Martinez thinks they are already there. He once spoke, when he was Everton’s manager, of England needing to find their own identity but he believes Southgate has solved that.

‘I’m on the outside looking in but with Gareth Southgate having worked with the Under 21s, knowing the house inside out, he has developed an England culture and found a system that suits this generation of players,’ he said. ‘I’m not surprised. Gareth is a thinker, a very meticulous worker. I wish him all the best after this game.’

It is a game that England most definitely want to win.