BACK TO MILAN FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 1939 FASCIST SALUTES
ENGLAND face Italy in Milan for the first
time since 1939 when Giuseppe Meazza, in whose honour the San Siro is now named, was captain of the Azzurri and both teams performed a fascist salute before a game watched by Mussolini’s sons. England claimed Italy’s second goal in a 2-2 draw was handball by Silvio Piola, although it was allowed to stand by German referee Dr Peco Bauwens, sparking a conspiracy theory of pre-war alliances. Tommy Lawton and Willie Hall scored for England, who went on to lose in Yugoslavia five days later, followed by a win in Romania — their final games before World War Two put a stop to international football for more than seven years.