SAO PAulo // The St George’s Cross that greeted the constant flow of fans as they departed the Artur Alvim metro station was pretty clear. “This is England”, it boasted, as hundreds clad in red and white lined shop corners in the streets around the Arena Corinthians.
It was more than two hours before England met Uruguay in Group D's defining encounter, but no one wanted to waste a second.
They were here to soak in the atmosphere.
Supporters of Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest had travelled down from Rio de Janeiro with hope that they could scavenge tickets but found many a like-minded soul. Improvised signs, made from cardboard boxes or sheets of paper pleaded for help.
“I need tickets,” some scrawled in English, while for those already more attuned to the locale, “Compro ingressos”.
It was safe to presume all left empty-handed. Yesterday was a religious holiday in Brazil, and even with most of Sao Paulo deserted – Paulistanos tend to vacate the city at the first sniff of a long weekend – scoring a last-minute admittance was almost impossible. Evidently, this was the hottest ticket in town.
Ride the metro red line right to the stadium and it was not long before chants broke out of “Ing-er-land, Ing-er-land”.
Three Lions jerseys, those of the 1966 vintage, hinted that, despite the initial defeat to Italy, hope had not been lost.
Yet the Uruguayans would not go unnoticed, either. Dressed in light blue, curly wigs, national team shirts and with flags draped over shoulders, they sang at top voice about their team.
They had not travelled as far as their English counterparts but were just as vociferous.
An estimated 10,000 English fans were apparently scattered across Sao Paulo. It seemed they had all descended on the Arena Corinthians, ticket or not.
jmcauley@thenational.ae
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