England 1-0 New Zealand (Kane 45+3)
It’s football but not as we know it.
When England meandered over to the touchline after 23 minutes of this glorified training session, you soon realised why this World Cup is going to be so different any that has gone before.
The drinks break is nothing of the sort, really. It’s actually a revolution in the way the game is played – a three-minute interval in which managers can change the narrative and momentum can be arrested. News flash – most people seemed to hate it. Count me in that column.
I get it: it’s hot. The players obviously need to take on water. But the way it is being administered isn’t just a quick sip on the sidelines, it’s introducing four quarters by stealth and my early call is that it will be 2026’s equivalent of 2010’s hated vuvuzela.
