Right before the England vs Germany draw for the World Cup on Monday night, a bunch of masked hooligans attacked England supporters in a bar at Wembley.
The pub’s name is the Green Man and it is located a mile away from the national stadium. A video on Twitter showed the pub being stormed by a group of people. The police interfered by riding horseback and chased away the attackers. Images of the attackers were captured on mobile phones.
This is infuriating! I hope they got what for. My Gran is 74 next year and she didn’t fight two world wars for this!
Netizens on Twitter criticised the masked hooligans for disrupting a friendly evening among England fans. Some managed to crack jokes by claiming that their grandmother served in the second world war, only for this to happen. Others were making fun of the hooligans saying that they have awful fashion sense.
Garreth Southgate, the manager for England in the World Cup, has been facing some issues. Mainly due to England not winning any of the six matches for the world cup. This has been their worst streak since 1993. England has received numerous criticisms throughout this qualifying season.
“The players have been fantastic in the last few days and took some individual responsibility, collectively talked in the group and the whole experience has been one we needed to grow the team,” said Southgate.
“We are going to have pressure in a World Cup. You can try and avoid it but it is coming so better we feel it and learn how to deal with it. The players reacted in the right way when Germany scored. We showed character but also a lot of quality.
“The crowd also came with us and stayed with us, even at 0-2, they didn’t get on their back and that was so important for us. We scored and the roof almost lifted off and we all remember what it feels like for a goal to go in. We had an absolute punch on the nose at the end.”
There were children at the pub with their parents. This has caused a number of people distressed and may have brought risk to cause injury to children. Paramedics came to the scene to help with the situation.
A few days later, a statement read “At 17:50hrs on Monday, 26 September a group of approximately 100 males, many wearing masks, approached a pub in Dagmar Avenue, Wembley through an alley leading towards the car park.
“While a number of the group were wearing England hats and scarves, it is believed they were German ‘fans’.
“The group entered the beer garden of the pub and began assaulting customers, most of whom were in the area to attend the England vs Germany match. Punches and projectiles including traffic cones were thrown.
“Officers responded and the group fled. The disorder lasted for around two minutes.
“There have been four arrests so far in relation to the disorder.”
England fans are known across the globe as the number one hooligans who are capable of disrupting the peace in any football venue and destroying assets in cities where England or English teams are playing.
Qatar will be no exception it seems but the UK is deploying police officers in the sheikhdom for the World Cup.
They will act as “cultural interpreters” between fans and local law enforcement, says the latest reports on the UK’s approach to the World Cup.
But the British police will not be there to tell the fans how to behave, says an official.
Considering that English hooligans vandalized everything on their way as they walked in big crowds towards Wembley stadium as they were ticketless for the Euro 2020 final, we can assume they will not be in such large numbers in Qatar to vent their anger over pricey tickets and hotel stays.
But for those who will be in Qatar, it is probably the restrictions and the tough Qatari police force that may dampen the acts of hooliganism during the World Cup.
What worries the UK police in Qatar is that fans may inadvertently cause offence, thus the presence of the officers on the ground is to caution against “unfortunate misunderstandings” that could stem from fans drinking alcohol, taking shirts off, waving flags, gathering in large numbers and other stereotypes that come with football fan culture.
When England was bidding for the World Cup 2018, some countries rushed to campaign against the risks of hooliganism that could disrupt the organisation of the competition in the UK.
They showcased the animosity of the hooligans towards a certain race and country and the fear that they could target the tourists and fans of other national formations, creating chaos and endangering lives.
The campaign bit deep into England’s chances to win the bid to host the World Cup. It was frustrations all over the UK but the ‘enemies’ of hooliganism won.
This time around the UK seems prepared to face the English fans on the ground in Qatar to prevent any shameful incidents from occurring.
The UK police delegation includes a team of 15 engagement officers, who will act as a “buffer” between supporters and Qatari law enforcement, says a UK paper.
“We’re really keen that the British officers who go are a buffer and cultural interpreter so that we can have the first conversation with our fans before anyone else is deployed,” the official says.
“Their primary focus is to liaise with the supporters and the police forces just to say ‘look we’re not saying you’re wrong, but it’s causing offence so you might want to moderate your behaviour before anyone else has to intervene.”
The good news perhaps for Qatar, is that the England fans are around 3,000 to 4,000 England fans and they are expected to travel to Qatar for the group stages, with numbers set to increase should Gareth Southgate’s side reach the knockout stages.
An estimated 2,000 to 3,000 Wales fans are also expected to fly out to the tournament, which concludes on 18 December.
Apparently it is rumoured that Qatar is paying a group of 40 England fans to attend the World Cup. They were given careful instructions to share positive messages about their time in Qatar and would sing specific songs when asked.
Furthermore, they are informed to report any postings on social media that would backlash Qatar on its human rights problem. They had to sign a code of conduct, and will receive free flights, free accommodations and about £60 a day for spending money.
Their flights are booked on the 17th of November. There are another 40 Welsh supporters joining this “Fan Leader Programme” and there are fans from 30 other countries in this programme.
According to Metro UK, a documentation about this whole agenda given to those that are involved stated “In celebration of the fans around the world, over the period of five minutes, fan chants from each nation will be played and you will be expected to stand up, sing the song/chant, wave your flags and represent your country.
The camera will focus on each national fan group in turn. We will share with you the chant/song selected from your country to ensure you are familiar with it.’ A sentence that was bold in red print states, ‘Be ready in your shirt, flags and scarves to cheer and shout.”
The Football Association has openly disclosed that they do not support this programme in any way. They caught wind of this only through media outlets publishing information about it.
However, there are no documentations of this published publicly. It is unclear whether these are facts or more fabrications from the Western world against the tiny Middle Eastern nation.
Netizen response towards Qatar’s alleged attempt
The same could be said about Olympics in China John. I just think that football seems to be hardest hit in these situations. They will change over time like the Uk has. Remember being gay was illegal when England won the world cup at Wembley in 1966. 🤷♂️🙌
The “woke” people of social media claim that they will be boycotting the whole tournament due to Qatar obtaining the rights to host it in a dodgy manner. Netizens are hoping that the winner of this league would “boycott” winning the trophy due to the human rights issues.
Others are claiming that this World Cup is not as exciting as the past, just a few weeks prior to the first match and there’s not much buzz going on about it. Others are quite adamant that we should not condone exploitation.
The response to that remark is that exploitation still happens regardless of what industry or event. Furthermore, a number of large European brands are heavily involved in the exploitation of cheap labourers in Asia.
More comments discussed about the human rights issues occuring during the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Furthermore, European countries such as England used to criminalise homosexuality and a netizen remarked that being gay was illegal in 1966 when England won the World Cup.
England went through humiliations in the Nations League, getting relegated after poor performances under the leadership of Gareth Southgate.
England and Germany shared the spoils at Wembley in a 3-3 draw but the results left both sides frustrated with their runs ahead of the World Cup.
Nevertheless, some in the UK are not shocked with the ‘Nation’s League’ performances, saying the England squad is one of the favourites to win the biggest global football tournament in Qatar.
While that is comforting, that is people still see the England squad as the best in the world ahead of the World Cup, there are concerns about the team.
The England squad had to fight against racist remarks online after it failed to win the EURO 2020, with three of its players missing the penalties at the end, giving Italy victory.
The Italians made it to the final stage of the Nations League in what can be seen as a performance filled with consistency, unlike the England squad. They should be one of the favourites to lift the World Cup coming November.
Russia and Qatar
Now, what is the difference between the England team that was fielded in Russia and the one that will defend their chances in Qatar?
England meets the USA, Wales and Iran in what can be said is an easy qualifying group that should see both the English side and the Americans go through the first stage.
Gregg Berhalter, the American coach, praised Gareth Southgate and backed the Three Lions to win the World Cup.
He says Southgate transformed the English players into a squad of superheroes.
He also says the performances of the England’s Women squad in the recent Women’s World Cup will also boost the morale of the English side in Qatar.
In Russia, England blew a chance to end their memorable World Cup adventure on a high note and become the best team to leave English shores when they were defeated 2-0 by Belgium in the third-place play-off.
This time around, they have a relatively easy (on paper) run in the first round of the W. Cup. WIll they disappoint the supporters?
England’s performance in Russia was one of their best showing in a World Cup after their 1966 controversial win against Germany by 4-2.
It was a Harry Maguire header that sent England on its way to the semi-finals after they beat Sweden 2-0.
Kieran Trippier’s superb fifth-minute free-kick put England ahead in the Luzhniki Stadium.
With this goal, they were on course for only their second World Cup final appearance. But Ivan Perisic’s second-half equaliser was well deserved as Croatia began to show their worth as the game progressed.
Another period of extra-time stood in the way of the Three Lions reaching the final against France, only for Mario Mandzukic to tuck away the winning goal after some static England defending allowed him to beat Pickford.
England and USA
In Qatar, England has to face the Americans and with the World Cup history between these two nations, it is hard to say whether the English side will come out the winner this time.
England has played the USA twice in the World Cup. The first time was way back in history when the USA team surprised the entire world by beating England 1-0 in 1950 and a terrible 1-1 draw in Rustenburg (South Africa) in 2010.
While the USA seems to be the bigger thorn in England’s side in this tournament, it still has to end up first in the group to face a lesser performing side in the next round. That is if England qualifies.
Nevertheless, in this year’s edition of the FIFA World Cup, Brazil is the 9/2 favourite to win, followed by France at 6/1 and England and Argentina at 7/1. This is based on the Bet365 predictions.
Poor results lately means England has drifted from the hot favourites to a lesser one but it is still among the countries that could end up as the top four in the competition.
Gareth Southgate’s England are 7/1 third favourites to win the World Cup in Qatar this winter, according to the bookies, after their poor run continued during the recent international break.
Southgate’s team was defeated 1-0 at the San Siro on Friday before drawing 3-3 with Germany at Wembley on Monday. These results bring their winless streak to six games.
For Behalter, the number of Premier League players (the best league in the world says many) means England is a hot favourite.
‘I don’t know if the expectations have always been in line with the quality of the squad. So back in 2010, realistically, I didn’t think they had the squad that could win the World Cup, right? But now it’s different. Now I think we all agree they have a squad that can win the World Cup.
‘And Gareth, in my opinion, has done a great job of helping the players cope with that pressure and actually using the jersey as a cape rather than a straitjacket and really giving them the freedom to play on the field, giving them the idea that they can represent their country in a positive way and make the country proud,’ he adds from an MLS event in Minneapolis last month.
The US begin their campaign against Wales, with the sides meeting in October 2020 for a 0-0 draw in Cardiff.
‘They were a good team, a very hard team to score on, a physical team, a lot of Premier League players, some real high quality in the attack, quality defenders,’ Behalter says.
Southgate’s squad
While the controversial and error-prone Harry Maguire is getting the backing of coach Southgate, it is undoubted that Harry Kane remains the top English player on the list of selected players or those who will be on the plane for the World Cup.
Harry Kane remains at the top of the table, with Declan Rice (2nd), Jordan Pickford (3rd), and Raheem Sterling (4th), but there is a change below that, with Jude Bellingham climbing four places to fifth after strong performances against Italy and Germany.
In the absence of Kalvin Phillips, who was already struggling for playing time at Manchester City before his injury, Bellingham appeared set to partner Rice. In the rankings, the Borussia Dortmund teenager leapfrogs Reece James (6th), Phil Foden (7th), Mason Mount (8th), Bukayo Saka (9th), and John Stones (10th).
The biggest movers, however, are Eric Dier (11th) and Luke Shaw (12th), who have risen 10 and 16 places respectively after returning to the squad and seizing their opportunity.
They suddenly look like sure bets for Qatar, and possibly Southgate’s starting lineup as well.
Despite a chorus of supporters and pundits criticising England manager Gareth Southgate for not playing Liverpool defender Kieran Tripper, Southgate believes Tripper is ahead of Trent Alexander-Arnold in the England pecking order.
Alexander-Arnold, who was on the substitutes bench but did not play against Italy, was left out of the squad that drew 3-3 with Germany at Wembley on Monday night in the Nations League.
Reece James, England’s standout right-sided defender, played the entire match and is set to play in the World Cup in Qatar.
According to the BBC, England has officially announced their World Cup squad, days after Brazil and the United States announced theirs. The deadline still remains on 14th November and those that haven’t announced their players would need to think critically.
James Maddison, Leicester’s proud midfielder has been named to join his country’s 26-man team for their match in Qatar. Gareth Southgate, the controversial manager, has also selected Marcus Rashford from Manchester United.
Players from Newcastle United, Manchester City and Arsenal were also selected to join their country’s national team. Unfortunately for Fikayo Tomori, Ivan Toney and Jarrod Bowen, they were all missing from the list that was selected by Southgate.
Image of Harry Maguire, from Wikipedia.
Furthermore, on the 21st of November, England will play against Iran in their World Cup debut. Ironically, Ukraine did not get a chance to play this time even after their lobbying to remove said Middle Eastern country from the World Cup list.
Kalvin Phillips is in the squad even after a two month absence due to his shoulder injury. Manchester United’s Harry Maguire who has struggled to get a game this season is also in the list. Unfortunately Jadon Sancho was not selected by Southgate.
Here is the list of all the English players:
Defenders: Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), Eric Dier (Tottenham), John Stones (Manchester City), Kyle Walker (Manchester City), Kieran Trippier (Newcastle), Conor Coady (Everton), Ben White (Arsenal), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool).
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Mason Mount (Chelsea), Conor Gallagher (Chelsea), Declan Rice (West Ham), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Kalvin Phillips (Manchester City).
Forwards: James Maddison (Leicester), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Harry Kane (Tottenham), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Raheem Sterling (Chelsea), Callum Wilson (Newcastle), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United).
First and foremost, a fan questioned Southgate’s decision of letting Gallagher in the team. Southgate has stated before that he would not let any players in just on the fact of their popularity.
Fans questioned that statement due to the fact that he let Maguire, Dier and Phillips in. However, other fans responded that these three players have played well under Southgate’s instructions and management.
More fans were disrespecting Jordan Henderson. They questioned what his aim was and what he would do in the matches. Fans are not particularly excited for the current lineup of players and are making memes that England might lose the World Cup this year. However, we will just have to wait and see.
Harry Maguire who is facing strong criticism for his playing skills got further roasted while playing for England in the Nations League.
He has, however, brushed off all the criticism. Previously, even his family came to the rescue of the Manchester United player, giving him more reasons to ignore or dismiss the claims against him.
According to the Manchester United Facebook fan page, Luke Shaw commented on Harry Maguire that: “He is an amazing player, an amazing character. He’s taken a lot of stick – probably more than I’ve ever seen before in football.
“He never hides away, he’s always there. You can have people who can hide away and not want to be in the spotlight. He keeps putting himself in the spotlight, it shows the strength and character he’s got.
“Everybody knows he’s an unbelievable player. At the moment the confidence might not be there because it could feel like the whole world is against him.”
But the Facebook pages like these are actually contributing to the attacks against Maguire. And comments like these from his colleagues or friends are not helping him at all.
In fact, Maguire is the object of satire online and there is now a plethora of memes depicting him as a player who lost his mojo but who is still dreaming of a supposed glorious individual time. The internet can be disastrous for people like Maguire.
Comments from the Facebook page above are that Maguire is not a bad football player, but at the same time he is not fit to be a Manchester United player.
Another user stated that he is not rude because people are against him but everyone is against him because he is rude. “The more I see him, the more I wonder why Manchester United paid £80 million for him,” states a netizen
Southgate in trouble
Another post on ESPN’s Facebook shared Gary Southgate’s assurance to the masses that Maguire is a good player and he was selected solely based on his skills.
The comment section of that post was wild, with one user commenting, “When a coach wants to get sacked, this is how they behave.”
One comment reads: “Gareth Southgate is trying to give Harry Maguire a confidence boost, but the question is, does Maguire even believe in himself?”
This was followed by “I understand that a coach has to stand up for his players but Maguire is just a mediocre defender that can act as a substitute.”
Following those two posts, a parody of a Manchester United fan club page posted Maguire’s stats claiming that he is the greatest defender of all time and that Southgate was right in choosing him for the World Cup.
Comments followed by the statement of the post were brutal, “worst defender ever. I will celebrate for weeks once he leaves Manchester United.”
Next, a comment states “he was responsible for the first two German goals.” That was referring to the World Cup preliminaries that happened recently.
A viral Facebook post states that he was booed when his name was read out after the clash with Germany. “Not nice but he brought it on himself, he has been underperforming for a year but instead of admitting to it, he blames external factors.”
A comment that would definitely sting would be, “Maguire practically gave the Germans a penalty as a reward.”
A fan wrote that as a Manchester United fan for over 30 years, he can’t bring himself to support a player like Maguire.
However there are comments that were in his defence too and they state “Maguire is a great player, he just needs more support from Manchester United fans.”
A United fan defends him, saying that the hate he is receiving is getting out of hand, he has been a well performing player for Manchester United for years and the hate he is getting is not deserving.
Harry Maguire is not the same player as he was two years ago, but it does not give anyone the right to turn on him but like we said, the internet can be harsh and he is now a famous meme.
“Mental health awareness for football players is just as important as any other person’s mental health, spare a second for your thoughts and imagine yourself in his position.” This statement was made by a Manchester United fan.
