The England stars got a real surprise during the players’ only day off during the European Championships.
England meet Germany in the quarter-finals of the European Championship on Tuesday, and the preparations for the important match probably started a little differently than most players had imagined.
The English national team players were greeted by a surprise concert with Ed Sheeran when they appeared at the national team’s headquarters in Burton, writes The Telegraph.
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Acoustic concert
Gareth Southgate’s men had their only day off at the European Championships on Wednesday, the day after they won the group game’s last match 1-0 against the Czech Republic. When they sat down to watch the European Championship matches in the evening to find out who they were going to face in the quarterfinals, they were visited by Sheeran.
The English artist, who is himself a sponsor of his childhood club Ipswich, was given permission to enter England’s strict European Championship bubble, and gave them an acoustic concert outdoors.
The Telegraph writes that the English national team players must have greatly appreciated the surprising concert. Under normal circumstances, they would have been allowed to be with their families on a day off, but due to the strict coronary restrictions, they were not given the opportunity to do so this year.
– I must say that he was a top, top man. He was a great guy. He was a very warm person and as an artist everyone knows how good he is. It was nice to have him outdoors where he got to play some songs and we got to talk to him. It really was a nice evening. Having him around us for a few hours was very good, says Jordan Henderson in the evening.
– Enjoyed it very much
– It was a calm thing. Some food, some barbecue. He had a guitar with him and played some songs. It was amazing. It was a bit surreal at times. He sat and played guitar while we ate food. I can not speak loud enough about him as a person. I thought he was brilliant and the boys liked it very much.
Some of the English players are also said to have used the day off to play some golf. Wednesday’s day off is the only day the players have had time for some relaxation before the real preparations for the quarterfinals, where they face very tough opposition.
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The Ed Sheeran visit is said to have been one of several tools national team manager Gareth Southgate is said to have used to make the time during the championship as good as possible during a month where they can meet a very limited number of people.
England’s quarter-final against Germany will be played on Tuesday at 18.00. The match will be broadcast on TV 2.
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