Thanksgiving gets An extension as USA makes a turkey of Three Lions
ENGLAND had the stuffing knocked out of the World Cup winning way as America left the Three Lions looking like turkeys following a goalless draw.
The US Thanksgiving celebrations were given a surprise extension after its national team outplayed Gareth Southgate’s men in a 0-0 stalemate.
US fans took the result as a huge victory. Thousands across the States tore themselves off their sofas,
defying their food comas to pack out bars across the country to watch yesterday’s Group B match.
Fans from both sides of the Atlantic crammed into the popular Ed & Mary’s bar in Jersey City.
Among them was American Wyatt Harte, who said: “Everyone expected us to get rolled over, but the team did us proud. They took it to England and left nothing on the pitch.”
Fellow American Carleigh Trivino, 28, agreed. She said: “On paper England had a far stronger team, but they just lacked spirit. It was like they didn’t turn up. Our team is so young, but to get a draw against one of the tournament favourites is a great result.”
Tom Rogers, from Tolworth, Surrey, was one of the dozens of Brits crammed into Ed & Mary’s.
The 33-year-old said: “It was a poor performance from England. With the players they have, they should be putting teams like the US away. America seemed to want it far more.”
The US did not qualify for the 2018 World Cup in
Russia while previous runs have seen little success, so this tournament is a new experience for the country’s growing number of football fans.
In New York, Manhattan’s Chelsea Bell bar is an unofficial World Cup fan zone where owner Frank Kane described the atmosphere as “electric”. He said: “For a sport that has to compete with American football, ice hockey and basketball, everyone has really got behind the tournament. They don’t come much bigger here than the USA versus England.”