The Queen has paid tribute to the “spirit, commitment and pride” of the England team in a good luck message ahead of the Euro 2020 showdown.
In a note to manager Gareth Southgate, the monarch sent her “good wishes”. In her written message to the team, the Queen recalled presenting the World Cup trophy to Bobby Moore almost six decades ago. She said: “Fifty-five years ago I was fortunate to present the World Cup to Bobby Moore and saw what it meant to the players, management and support staff to reach and win the final of a major international football tournament.
“I want to send my congratulations and that of my family to you all on reaching the final of the European Championships, and send my good wishes with the hope that history will record not only your success but also the spirit, commitment and pride with which you have conducted yourselves.”
Her comments were echoed by PM Boris Johnson, who wrote to the team saying they had “already made history”.
The PM said in his letter to manager Gareth Southgate and his players: “We are not just hoping or praying. We believe in you, Gareth, and your incredible squad. On behalf of the entire nation, good luck, have a great game – and bring it home!”
Johnson seems to have ignored the urging of civil servants who warned ministers not to use the “football’s coming home” slogan because it annoyed other countries.
The Italian squad, flew into the UK yesterday before heading for a final training session at Tottenham’s Enfield training centre.
England, meanwhile, held their final get-together at their training base at St George’s Park, Staffordshire.
Wembley, which has a capacity of 90,000, will be two-thirds full, with Italy set to be backed by almost 8,000 fans. Tickets were said to be changing hands for up to £8,000 each yesterday.
Italy defender Leonardo Bonucci, one of the stars of the tournament, said the prospect of playing in front of a partisan Wembley crowd held no fears for his team.
He said: “We will be playing at their home but we are not afraid of that. We are looking forward to going to Wembley on Sunday.”
Bookmakers have England slight favourites to win at around 4/5, with Italy at evens. Despite the expected crowds, police urged fans not to gather in large numbers in London, warning the city remains in the grip of a “public health crisis”.
Met officers have been visiting venues to ensure social distancing is maintained, and said large numbers of police would be in place at various locations.
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