The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
For Portugal in thriller
Loftus-Cheek concentrates on cup opener
counter thrusts. Spain levelled after 24 minutes when Costa beat Pepe in the air and kept his composure to drill the ball low past covering Portugal defenders and goalkeeper Rui Patricio.
Costa’s initial challenge came under the scrutiny of the Video Assistant Referee system but it rightly stood.
Two minutes later Portugal did escape when Isco’s thunderous 20-yard strike left the crossbar shaking but did not cross the line. Spain continued to draw pretty patterns and Iniesta ended one such move by dragging wide of the far post.
But, just as Portugal seemed to be holding their collective breath for the half-time break, the direction of the contest was turned on its head.
Ronaldo tried his luck from a central position 20 yards out and his number came up, De Gea letting the low drive to slip his grasp in a truly desperate moment for the Manchester United keeper.
But the error was not fatal as Silva floated a 54th-minute free-kick to the back post that Sergio Busquets nodded down and Costa finished from inside the six-yard box.
Four minutes later Nacho’s sweet drive cannoned in off a post and that was the signal for Spain to take control. A fourth goal seemed likely.
But Ronaldo, as he so often does, had the final word to spark Portuguese joy and another Spanish inquisition. Ruben Loftus-Cheek played down concerns about racism in Russia but admitted the subject has been discussed in England team meetings.
Left-back Danny Rose told his family to stay in the United Kingdom rather than travel to the World Cup because of fears about abuse.
Yet, Chelsea midfielder Loftus-Cheek, who spent last season on loan at Crystal Palace, said: “That’s Danny’s choice.
“I’m not thinking about it too much – if it happens we’ll deal with it but, looking ahead, I’m just going with the flow.”
Asked if the issue had been discussed as a group, he added: “Yes, we’ve had a few meetings on it to get a vision as a group, how they think about it and what way to go.”
Loftus-Cheek said preparations for the Three Lions’ opening match against Tunisia on Monday are well under way.
However, the 22-yearold, along with the rest of the squad, are still in the dark over who boss Gareth Southgate will pick to start in Volgograd.
“We’ve just started to go over tactics; meetings and analysing the first game, I expect there will be a lot more of that in the next couple of days,” he said.
“Any game in the World Cup is a tough game. The atmosphere brings a lot out of both teams. We’re ready for a tough game and an aggressive start from them, so we need to be ready.
“We might have to wait until game day (to find out who starts) but who knows?”
Asked if he would like to find out sooner or later, Loftus-Cheek added: “It’s different for different players.
“I’m not too bothered but if I had to choose I’d like to know earlier so you can get your head around it.”
Marcus Rashford trained for the first time since England landed in Russia as all 23 squad members took part yesterday morning.
Rashford was absent from the first two days at the Three Lions’ Spartak Zelenogorsk base due to a minor knee complaint, but has now rejoined the group.
The 20-year-old Manchester United forward turned in a man-of-thematch performance in England’s final warm-up friendly against Costa Rica but looks set for a place on the bench on Monday.