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England squad booed as they arrive in Mexico
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England squad booed as they arrive in Mexico
England were booed as they arrived at their Mexico City hotel to prepare for their World Cup last-16 game against Mexico.
England face the tournament co-hosts on Sunday (01:00 BST, Monday), a match which will be shown live on BBC One and iPlayer.
There is increased security at England’s hotel after Ecuador, whom Mexico played in the last 32 in Mexico City, lodged a noise complaint with Fifa.
Ecuador players were deliberately kept awake by local supporters, who used loudspeakers, horns and motorcycles outside the team hotel late at night.
Mexico went on to win 2-0.
Ecuador stayed in the Westin Hotel and England wanted to keep their location undisclosed, but there were concerns that the location would be leaked.
Hundreds of locals were waiting outside their hotel as the team coach arrived on Friday, with some chanting “Mexico” and others booing.
Members of Mexico’s National Guard lined the entrance to England’s hotel, while police officers in riot gear stood next to barriers on the road outside the hotel.
A police presence was in place before the England team’s arrival
A police presence was in place before the England team’s arrival
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England arrived two days before the game as Fifa rules for this stage of the tournament state that teams must hold a part-open training session in the local area the day before the game.
Their preparations were disrupted on Friday by a chaotic five-and-a-half-hour period in which it emerged that Fifa was considering bringing the match forward by six hours because of forecast storms.
The Football Association and Mexico’s football federation (FMF) were angry at the proposal less than 48 hours before kick-off, and the game will now start as originally scheduled.
England also face the challenge of playing the game at high altitude.
Mexico City has an average elevation of about 2,240m above sea level, meaning there is less oxygen available.
Ideally, athletes should spend a week or two living at that altitude to allow their bodies to acclimatise and generate more red blood cells.
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‘You can’t breathe’ – what’s it like playing at altitude?
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‘You can’t breathe’ – what’s it like playing at altitude?
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