Mason Greenwood, Phil Foden kicked out of the England squad
London, Monday
England youngsters Phil Foden and Mason Greenwood will not travel with their team-mates to Denmark today after footage emerged of the pair bringing girls back to the team hotel in Iceland.
The pair made their senior international debuts in the win over Iceland on Saturday - but those accomplishments have now been overshadowed.
Players have been given strict guidelines to ensure Covid safety - and the images - published by Icelandic outlet DV - appears to show Foden and Greenwood disregard those protocols on Sunday.
The pair’s conduct in bringing girls back has also contravened the FA’s behavioural rules for players whilst on international duty.
In the short clip, Foden and Greenwood appear to be wearing their new England training wear and the players are now in hot water with management.
In an interview with DV, one of the girls in the Snapchat video allegedly filmed in the hotel room said: ‘We had no idea about these [Covid-19] rules, they never said we could not take pictures.’
Another girl claimed to have notified the England stars that the pictures were in circulation with a Snapchat message, but ‘they have not opened it’.
She also claimed to have been in a relationship ‘with one of the boys for a few days’, noting: ‘The only thing I can say is that I had been talking to one of them for a few days. I’m not going to say where.’
Foden has a two-year-old son and a long-term girlfriend, while United star Greenwood broke up with his model girlfriend back in May.
Manchester City midfielder Foden started for Gareth Southgate’s side against Iceland on Saturday night, making his senior international debut, while Greenwood came off the bench to achieve the same accolade.
‘I think at the moment I’m trying to take a lot of information in,’ Southgate said at Monday’s press conference.
‘Obviously they have been naive, we have dealt with it appropriately. I recognise their age but the whole world is dealing with this pandemic.
‘I’m a father with children, young adults, I know people get things wrong. I’m not excusing that in this instance.
‘These are two boys I don’t know particularly well at the moment so can’t speak in great depth.
I have got to try and speak with them later in the appropriate way. They have got responsibilities and they have apologised.
‘This is a job like no other in terms of the things you have to deal with. In terms of what is expected, the players who have been with us a longer time know exactly what is expected - whenever people have stepped across that line we have dealt with it appropriately.
The two boys are going to find themselves in a position where there will be lots of judgement of them from afar.
‘They understand they have got this wrong. Our job is to get on with the game.’
While the pair would have been looking ahead to England’s next fixture against Denmark in Copenhagen on Tuesday night, they will now leave Iceland under a dark cloud.
The pair were both absent from England training on Monday and it was then confirmed that they would leave the camp and travel home before the team’s second and final match. - Daily Mail
