World Cup 2014: England opt for extra time in hot and humid Manaus

Roy Hodgson wants his side to acclimatise to the Amazonian conditions

Ed Aarons
Thursday 19 December 2013 02:00 GMT
Comments
Roy Hodgson is hoping the extra day in Manaus will aid the players' acclimatisation
Roy Hodgson is hoping the extra day in Manaus will aid the players' acclimatisation (Getty Images)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Roy Hodgson and his England squad will spend an extra day in Manaus immediately before their first 2014 World Cup game against Italy there on 14 June in a bid to help acclimatise to the extreme conditions in the Amazonian city.

Hodgson also confirmed that he and Club England managing director Adrian Bevington will travel to Manaus in February ahead of a World Cup workshop for all competing nations, when they will assess potential bases for the squad.

Despite their other Group D matches against Uruguay and Costa Rica being in Sao Paulo and Belo Horizonte respectively, England's main tournament base will still be in Rio, but the manager admitted during his visit to the Teenage Cancer Trust unit in London that it is important they are fully prepared for high temperatures and humidity levels of up to 80 per cent at the Arena da Amazonia.

"It presents very different challenges to the games in Belo Horizonte and Sao Paulo, but we will be ready for that," he said. "I shall make a visit there before we have the workshop in February and we will also spend a day or so in Miami to check on our potential camp there before we go to Rio.

"We have already decided we will go with the team [to Manaus] two days before [the Italy game], not the usual one day before, and we hope that acclimatisation, and the acclimatisation in Miami before, will stand us in good stead."

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in