England alter travel plans amid spying concerns
England will delay their arrival to Mexico City to guard against fears of spying ahead of their World Cup last-16 clash with Mexico. The Three Lions are scheduled to play the tournament co-hosts at Azteca Stadium on Sunday, with kick-off at 1am BST on Monday morning. Thomas Tuchel's side face a daunting task against a Mexico team that has yet to concede a goal in the tournament and plays at an altitude of 2,240 metres above sea level.
England are due to arrive in Mexico City on Friday and will spend two nights in the capital before the game. The decision to delay arrival is partly to avoid the most severe effects of altitude sickness, which tend to kick in between three and nine days. However, widespread reports indicate that England also feared that key training sessions in the build-up would be targeted by spies seeking valuable insight on team shape and selection.
Training sessions moved to Kansas City
Instead of training in Mexico, those sessions will take place at England's tournament base in Kansas City, where they have screened-off training pitches and a heavy security presence provided by local police. Even if England progress past the last-16, Tuchel and the squad intend to return to Kansas for the build-up to later knockout matches.
The issue of spying in football came to the fore late last season when Southampton were ejected from the Championship play-off final after admitting to spying on the training sessions of semi-final opponents Middlesbrough. Two years ago at the Olympic Games, the Canada women's national team received a six-point deduction after being caught using a drone to watch New Zealand train.
Concerns over fan disruption at hotel
Alongside spying fears, England also have concerns that the location of their hotel will be leaked and targeted by Mexico supporters before the match. This issue plagued Ecuador, who were beaten by Mexico in the round of 32 on Wednesday, with their players kept awake by home fans the night before the game. From midnight until the early hours of the match day, supporters gathered outside the Westin Hotel in Mexico City where Ecuador's squad was staying, using car horns, motorcycles, and loudspeakers to disturb the players.
Ecuador subsequently submitted a complaint to FIFA. The Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF) said in a statement: 'Such conduct stands in stark contrast to the principles of fair play, equity, and unity that a World Cup should embody. The FEF respectfully calls upon the competent authorities to pay greater attention to these events and to adopt the necessary measures to safeguard the safety of our players, coaching staff, and fans.'
England's team hotel in Mexico is expected to have roadblocks around its perimeter to try to guard against pre-game disruption.
