England is undergoing a churn, both at home and in faraway Russia. When news reached Moscow that Theresa May's government is walking on egg shells, Gareth Southgate's multicultural bunch tried to shut everything out. They have a far greater goal to reach than the final of the World Cup, even though they will become only the second team in their chequered history to do so.
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At the other end of the spectrum, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic had travelled economy class along with other fans to reach Sochi and broke into a celebratory dance when Croatia survived the shootout against Russia to enter the semifinals. The first-ever female president of Croatia is quite a rage among netizens with her girl-next-door attitude and the strong message of camaraderie that she spreads.
Contrary to England's refusal to send state officials to Russia over political bickering, the Croatian president has scored a mammoth diplomatic goal. The British premier, instead, announced in the House of Commons that the Cross of St George will be hoisted above the 10 Downing street for every England match.
England's semifinal clash against Croatia has reached beyond the limits of the Luzhniki now and certain sections of the media are referring to the fall of the Margaret Thatcher government four months after England's exit from the semifinals in 1990. History has forever weighed heavy against the Three Lions. They live by tradition and unfortunately get sacrificed at its altar.
With so much going on at home politically, Southgate could not but say, "We are a team with our diversity and youth that represents modern England. In England, we have spent a bit of time being a bit lost as to what our modern identity is. Of course, first and foremost I will be judged on football result. But we have a chance to affect other things that are bigger."
Jordan Pickford in goal, Ashley Young and Kieran Trippier as full backs, Jesse Lingard and Delle Ali in the middle and Raheem Sterling helping captain Harry Kane up the park. Jordan Henderson holds things together in the middle while John Stones and newest hero Harry Maguire are the cornerstones of English defence. Truly a diverse and young group led by a former England international who has gone through the worst of times in a Three Lions shirt.
Those days of turmoil had helped Southgate shape his ideas about life and the game he worships. The current crop, undervalued by everyone in England a month ago, has benefitted immensely living by those tenets of the 'collective', a word that the England coach loves as much as his waistcoat.
England's trip has been rather vapid, unlike Croatia, who have a well-defined hero in Luka Modric and a well-trained supporting cast of Ivan Rakitic, Mario Mandzukic, Ivan Perisic, and had a rather dramatic journey to the semifinals, Barring one night at Luzhniki where Pickford's acrobatics under the bar were called for against Colombia to exorcise the penalty curse, England's passage has seen no pitfalls. Lacking in flair power, Southgate has identified set-piece situations as the convincing route for England to reach the goal and his team has scored eight out of total 11 from such situations.
It is an area that Croatia need to be extremely careful of as their aerial vulnerability was exploited by Russia in the quarterfinals. Their celebrations after shootout success went a lot overboard. The Croatian Football Federation has sacked assistant coach Ognjen Vukojevic after he appeared in a video with defender Domagoj Vida and allegedly made pro-Ukraine remarks. Vida, who scored in extra-time for Croatia, has been let off by Fifa with a warning.
Sport cannot survive in isolation as the latest fallout is just an indicator. With a lot of political undercurrent, the semifinal at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium will see much more than just football on Wednesday.
ALSO READ: Maradona feels caution will be the catchword tonight
At the other end of the spectrum, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic had travelled economy class along with other fans to reach Sochi and broke into a celebratory dance when Croatia survived the shootout against Russia to enter the semifinals. The first-ever female president of Croatia is quite a rage among netizens with her girl-next-door attitude and the strong message of camaraderie that she spreads.
Contrary to England's refusal to send state officials to Russia over political bickering, the Croatian president has scored a mammoth diplomatic goal. The British premier, instead, announced in the House of Commons that the Cross of St George will be hoisted above the 10 Downing street for every England match.
England's semifinal clash against Croatia has reached beyond the limits of the Luzhniki now and certain sections of the media are referring to the fall of the Margaret Thatcher government four months after England's exit from the semifinals in 1990. History has forever weighed heavy against the Three Lions. They live by tradition and unfortunately get sacrificed at its altar.
With so much going on at home politically, Southgate could not but say, "We are a team with our diversity and youth that represents modern England. In England, we have spent a bit of time being a bit lost as to what our modern identity is. Of course, first and foremost I will be judged on football result. But we have a chance to affect other things that are bigger."
Jordan Pickford in goal, Ashley Young and Kieran Trippier as full backs, Jesse Lingard and Delle Ali in the middle and Raheem Sterling helping captain Harry Kane up the park. Jordan Henderson holds things together in the middle while John Stones and newest hero Harry Maguire are the cornerstones of English defence. Truly a diverse and young group led by a former England international who has gone through the worst of times in a Three Lions shirt.
Those days of turmoil had helped Southgate shape his ideas about life and the game he worships. The current crop, undervalued by everyone in England a month ago, has benefitted immensely living by those tenets of the 'collective', a word that the England coach loves as much as his waistcoat.
England's trip has been rather vapid, unlike Croatia, who have a well-defined hero in Luka Modric and a well-trained supporting cast of Ivan Rakitic, Mario Mandzukic, Ivan Perisic, and had a rather dramatic journey to the semifinals, Barring one night at Luzhniki where Pickford's acrobatics under the bar were called for against Colombia to exorcise the penalty curse, England's passage has seen no pitfalls. Lacking in flair power, Southgate has identified set-piece situations as the convincing route for England to reach the goal and his team has scored eight out of total 11 from such situations.
It is an area that Croatia need to be extremely careful of as their aerial vulnerability was exploited by Russia in the quarterfinals. Their celebrations after shootout success went a lot overboard. The Croatian Football Federation has sacked assistant coach Ognjen Vukojevic after he appeared in a video with defender Domagoj Vida and allegedly made pro-Ukraine remarks. Vida, who scored in extra-time for Croatia, has been let off by Fifa with a warning.
Sport cannot survive in isolation as the latest fallout is just an indicator. With a lot of political undercurrent, the semifinal at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium will see much more than just football on Wednesday.
Source : timesofindia[dot]indiatimes[dot]com
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