A photo of a scribbled team lineup, spotted in the hands of an assistant coach, threatens to sour the unusually cordial World Cup relations between the England team and its travelling media pack.
Four years after the team leadership banned reporters for snooping on closed training sessions in Brazil, the latest prying took place in open training. While counterparts had their lenses tracking the players before SundayB次元官网网址檚 game against Panama, the London Evening Standard newspaperB次元官网网址檚 Jeremy Selywn snapped a piece of paper in the hands of Steve Holland showing players in formation.
Now the England camp is actually asking media: Are you with us or against us?
B次元官网网址淭ry to keep it to yourself and donB次元官网网址檛 bring it out to the world, because itB次元官网网址檚 not going to help us come the later stages of the tournament,B次元官网网址� defender Kyle Walker said Friday. B次元官网网址淵ou guys have to do your little bit. So if you could just please help us with that, it would be polite.B次元官网网址�
Holland apologized to the squad at training on Friday in Repino, near St. Petersburg.
B次元官网网址淲e had a bit of banter with him about, and that was it,B次元官网网址� Walker said. B次元官网网址淲e knocked it on the head at that.B次元官网网址�
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The revelation was the first indication the squad had that Raheem Sterling could be dropped after struggling to make an impression in the opening win against Tunisia on Monday and Marcus Rashford could lead the attack with captain Harry Kane.
Southgate, though, wasnB次元官网网址檛 planning to disclose the starting XI until Saturday when England flies to Nizhny Novgorod to play Panama the following night.
B次元官网网址淥bviously any time, if we were to give the opposition the opportunity of having our team, itB次元官网网址檚 a disadvantage to us,B次元官网网址� Southgate told Talksport radio station. B次元官网网址淪o of course our media has to decide whether they want to help the team or not. Given that was just a squad list, it doesnB次元官网网址檛 make any difference to us really.B次元官网网址�
In keeping with his relaxed persona, Southgate went on to emphasize that the incident was B次元官网网址渘o drama.B次元官网网址�
A former England defender, Southgate has tried to reduce the friction between reporters and players by giving more access to players B次元官网网址� even after news conferences. The squad and journalists have been competing at pub sports in Russia. That continued on Friday , with striker Jamie Vardy taking on a reporter at pool, even as the media defended the right to publish HollandB次元官网网址檚 handwritten notes.
B次元官网网址淟etB次元官网网址檚 just be clear on one thing,B次元官网网址� tweeted Matt Law, a football writer for the Daily Telegraph newspaper. B次元官网网址淭he pic of the England team was taken in an OPEN training session in which photographers and cameramen are invited to take pictures. You may not agree with it being published, but there was certainly no hiding in bushes.B次元官网网址�
At the 2014 World Cup, some reporters did find vantage points in Rio de Janeiro to watch private training sessions, which irritated the then-England coaching staff, including Gary Neville.
The publication of the lineup at this tournament B次元官网网址� even without the need for spying B次元官网网址渦ndermines the relationship and trust with the team,B次元官网网址� according to Neville, who is working in Russia as a TV pundit.
Rob Harris, The Associated Press
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