Tyrone’s big night ruined by the bigots

TYRONE MINGS took a moment to reflect. Two hours before kick- of f , with the stadium deserted, he stood in the centre circle and surveyed the scene.

A few yards away, the rest of England’s squad were chatting and killing time, but Mings had his earphones in and wanted to gather his thoughts before the biggest night of his professional career, no doubt reflecting on a journey that had started in the humble surroundings of Yate Town.

Here he was — as England’s Twitter feed proudly declared — the 1,244th man to win a senior cap. Mings has enjoyed an assured start to the campaign with Aston Villa — Gareth Southgate and Steve Holland have followed him closely — and the wonderful spin-off was here in Sofia.

England, of course, were short odds to win this contest and Bulgaria’s forward line were never going to pose the problems Mings (below) has to solve on a weekly basis in the Premier League. But, even so, you can guarantee his heart was jumping and the adrenalin was flowing.

This, clearly, was going to be a night he would never forget. True, there were caveats to his inclusion. It was no surprise that Michael Keane was omitted after a chastening night in Prague on Friday, but it was widely expected that Liverpool’s Joe Gomez would come in. Southgate, however, had other ideas.

Mings, with his power and his stature and his left foot, was going to provide balance for Harry Maguire. You could see in the early stages, too, the symmetry as he made a couple of forging runs and complemented Leicester’s Ben Chilwell. If he was nervous, it never showed.

The more he touched the ball, the more his confidence grew. Sharp passes to Jordan Henderson and Ross Barkley, composure to take possession from Jordan Pickford close to his own byline. You could see he was enjoying every second. And then...

You know what happened next. It became a night Mings would never forget for all the wrong reasons. In the 22nd minute, he shouted to Bojan Zobenica, the Croatian assistant referee on the far side of the pitch, four words that altered the course of the night: ‘Did you hear that?’

We do not know what Zobenica heard but we know precisely what Mings had heard: monkey chanting. It was the same for Marcus Rashford and Raheem Sterling on the other side of the pitch. Every time they touched the ball, there was the despicable soundtrack that is present in Eastern Europe. The Bulgarians had taken umbrage in their pre-match press conference about racism being a persistent line of questioning. Krasimir Balakov, the head coach, even claimed England’s problems with racism were far worse than in Bulgaria.

There are issues in this country. Nobody, however, was naive enough to think this game was going to pass without incident and, for the second time in seven months, an England match was horribly marred.

What makes it more lamentable is the fact the narrative was disfigured. It prevented us speaking solely about England’s delightful football. Mings, to his total credit, was a consummate professional. If the rage he felt when hearing those chants was burning, he never let it boil over.

Maguire is Southgate’s go-to central defender, one of five men — the others being Pickford, Kane, Henderson and Sterling — who are guaranteed to start, fitness permitting, when Euro 2020 begins for England at Wembley on June 14.

Yet Mings took charge of situations, pointing to Maguire where he should go, and demanding his team-mates keep their focus. Such professionalism enabled England to swat their hapless opponents aside in ruthless, brutal style.

It will be interesting to see what happens next month if Southgate has a full complement of central defenders available. One thing we can say for certain, though, is that Mings absolutely deserves another opportunity to play for England.

Reaching the pinnacle should provide memories that last a lifetime. Speak to any of this group about how they felt the first time they had Three Lions on their chest and, instantly, you will see a beaming smile. Playing for England is what every boy who kicks a football wants to do.

The first night should be special. Mings, miserably, saw bigots steal the headlines. That cannot be right. Reassuringly, Southgate will know that. When he does his debrief and focuses on the football, he will see that Mings’s big audition went smoothly. At the final whistle, fittingly, he was standing in almost the same spot where he had been three hours earlier.

He was wrapped in hugs and handshakes by team-mates and received one big embrace from Southgate’s assistant Chris Powell. He has earned the

chance to go again.