The countdown is on for England to get their World Cup 2026 campaign underway. England have had to watch as Germany, USA, Sweden and Scotland won their opening matches at this summer's expanded tournament in North America. The good news for Three Lions supporters is the wait is almost over.
After three pre-tournament warm-up matches in Miami, England have arrived at their training base in Kansas City, Missouri. However, preparations have been rocky. The squad dealt with theft of team equipment in transit, and their first evening saw Kansas City hit by extreme weather with a 'deadly' tornado warning issued.
Soon, focus will be on the Group L curtain-raiser against Croatia in Dallas on Wednesday, June 17 at 9pm UK time. It has been confirmed that Clement Turpin will referee. This is controversial because Turpin was labelled a 'Grade E' official by head coach Thomas Tuchel.
The incident occurred when Tuchel was at Bayern Munich during the 2022-23 season. After being sent to the stands by Turpin in the Champions League quarter-final second leg against Manchester City, Tuchel was critical. Speaking after Bayern's 4-1 aggregate loss, Tuchel said: 'Two things couldn't keep up with the level - the pitch wasn't in good condition and also the referee, unfortunately, was Grade E. I'd give him a one out of 10. He was absolutely terrible. It's unbelievable at this level. He was whistling for everything and anything. Everything was against us. In the end, we were never in a position to turn things around with three men against us. That's a fact.'
