The teenage midfielder shone on an evening altogether more relaxed than the team’s previous appearance at WembleyAndorra at home on a sleepy Sunday evening in north-west London: it is not exactly an occasion that screams of flares up backsides, ticketless fans storming the turnstiles and beer bottles flying through the air on Wembley Way.Unsurprisingly nobody tried to force their way in to watch England’s second string cruise past the world’s 156th best team in a match devoid of any real competitive edge. Instead the mood was light and relaxed for England’s first game at Wembley since the disorder that marred the Euro 2020 final against Italy, almost as if those who were present were the people who had missed out...
Eder Sarabia and Gerard Piqué have FC Andorra moving up as they look to move on from one of Barcelona’s worst nightsOn a cold, wet Sunday night in a valley some way up the Andorran Pyrenees, 18km beyond the Spanish border and somewhere above the clouds, the linesman turns towards the bench and delivers a warning. Behind him the manager of the home team is on his feet, pacing and shouting. “Eder,” the linesman says, correctly imagining a long evening already, “we haven’t even been playing six minutes.”There is a smile then and again two hours later, sitting in aportable building at the south end of the pitch where coaching staff and sporting director dissect the match, magnetic players on...
Prague steels itself for England’s fans, Ireland may have a new hero in Aaron Connolly and Scotland are desperate to find goalsIn what looks certain to resemble the world’s most unedifying stag party, an estimated 6,000 England fans will descend on Prague to watch Gareth Southgate’s team take on the Czech Republic. Unsurprisingly designated as a “high risk” fixture, this Friday night game will attract no shortage of thirsty visitors to the Czech capital, hellbent on making a weekend of it in a city renowned for the cheapness of its beer and myriad other nocturnal delights. Scheduled to kick off at 8.45pm local time, when more patriotic fans will have had all day to occupy the city’s Old Town Square,...