Thomas Tuchel’s England squad are due to arrive in Mexico City on Friday, two nights before their World Cup last-16 clash against the host nation — a change in schedule forced by fears that boisterous locals will try to keep them awake. The shift comes after Ecuador, Mexico’s previous opponents, lodged a complaint to Fifa when their squad were deliberately kept awake by supporters using loudspeakers, horns and motorcycles outside the team hotel late at night.
Ecuador stayed at the Westin Hotel. England want to keep their own location undisclosed, but there is a concern it will be leaked on social media. To combat the threat, players and staff who have not brought their own ear plugs or sleep bands are to be offered natural sleep remedies or white noise audio machines to ensure sleep is not impacted.
“England take precautions against noisy Mexico fans and altitude ahead of World Cup last-16 tie.”
Fifa rules at this stage require a part-open training session in the locality the day before the game. England had been holding that in Kansas, before flying to the US city where the match took place. Now they will train in Mexico instead.
Beyond the noise, England face a more physiological obstacle: altitude. Mexico City sits at an average of 2,240 metres above sea level, meaning less oxygen is available. Mexico have played all four of their World Cup games so far at high altitude — three at Azteca Stadium in Mexico City and one in Guadalajara, which is on average 1,566 metres above sea level. Ideally, athletes should spend a week or two living at that level to allow their body to acclimatise and generate more red blood cells.
Tuchel conceded the disadvantage. “The altitude will be a big disadvantage because we cannot physically adapt to it,” he said. “And in four days, it’s just impossible. More obstacles may come, but we are ready for that. My understanding is that we cannot adapt to the altitude. That is just a huge advantage that Mexico will have. It just takes too much time. We have only three days in between these matches. It’s physically just…”
England’s match against Mexico takes place on Sunday (01:00 BST Monday), live on BBC One and iPlayer.