FIFA World Cup – England v. Croatia
We don’t generally think of Great Britain as a place of slapstick humor and belly laughs.
Drollery, for sure. Subtle wit. But not slapstick and goofy props.
So it is with great pleasure that we can tell you England’s soccer team, in prepping for Wednesday’s World Cup semifinal with Croatia (2 p.m. ET, Fox), has been playing with a rubber chicken.
Not in lieu of a soccer ball, mind you. Just to keep the lads loose as the pressure mounts. As part of their warmups, the players toss a rubber chicken around and try to elude their teammates as they pass the thing back and forth. Yes, they can use their hands.
“Our physical performance coaches try to keep refreshing the warm-ups for the players and keep them stimulated, using a bit of fun to get them moving,” national team coach Gareth Southgate told ESPN FC’s Mark Ogden. “Just some mobility exercises.”
The winner of this semifinal match will go on to play France, a 1-0 winner on Tuesday over Belgium. No offense toward Croatia, but how can we not want an England-France battle for the championship? Considering they are neighbors, they sure don’t get along. They were at war in the 13th century, most of the 16th century and massive chunks of the 18th century.
That England is known as the Three Lions should have France biting the head off the rubber chicken. Those three lions represent the rulers of the Kingdom of England, the Duchy of Normandy and Duchy of Aquitane. The latter two locales are in France, ruled at times in the past by England. Mon Dieu!
Ok, so much for the history lesson and the rubber chicken circuit. Now, on to the fields of friendly strife for World Cup glory.
What You Need To Know About The Dog Flu
-
The rookie player shot 8-under 64. At the 150th Open Championship in St. Andrews, Scotland, an up-and-coming golfer made...
-
The Browns will receive a draft pick in exchange. Today, the Cleveland Browns announced that they would be trading...
-
Williams was beaten by Harmony Tan after a lengthy match. Yesterday, tennis star Serena Williams took on Harmony Tan...
-
Cole’s streak lasted until the eighth inning. Last night saw the New York Yankees take on the Tampa Bay...
-
Mayweather called the induction one of the highlights of his career. Over the weekend, retired professional boxer Floyd Mayweather...
-
Brady will join up with Fox Sports when he retires. Earlier this year, superstar NFL player Tom Brady temporarily...
-
Zalatoris said watching Woods made him feel something akin to imposter syndrome. Last week saw the first few rounds...
-
The three will play in a featured group in the first two rounds. Since recovering from a severe car...
-
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic criticized the decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players. Recently, the organizers of this...
-
Owen Woodward has been removed from the college team after tackling a player. This week, the baseball teams of...
-
Coach Steve Nash wants to try integrating Ben Simmons into the lineup in the heat of the season. After...
-
Woods is planning on competing in this week’s tournament. The 2022 Masters Tournament is set to begin tomorrow, April...