Marcus Rashford was the only absentee as England trained on Wednesday for the first time since arriving in Russia.
The Manchester United striker picked up a minor knock in England’s final training session at St George’s Park before they flew from London to St Petersburg on Tuesday afternoon.
The other 22 players trained fully at the specially constructed ‘Spartak stadium’ in Zelenogorsk, just outside where England are staying in Repino. They will train here again on Thursday, Friday and Saturday before flying to Volgograd for their opening game against Tunisia on Monday evening. Rashford’s injury makes it even more likely that Raheem Sterling will start instead of him alongside Harry Kane in England’s opener.
England were greeted by local dignitaries who thanked them for staying here in this district outside of St Petersburg. England were presented with a karavaj, a decorated loaf that is often given as a present in Russia, and with a ceremonial pot of tea.
Fifa demands that every country at the World Cup hosts one training session for local fans at their training ground, so the FA decided to hold theirs today, less than 24 hours after arriving in Russia. The England players played possession games and small-sided matches before posing with local children for photographs and signing autographs.
