Split Loyalties - World Cup story

Misunderstandings and memories Shock. That was the first emotion that Monty felt as he sat in the England team’s hotel lobby, eyes transfixed on the television screen. While he may not have understood a word of what the Brazilian news presenters were actually saying, he didn’t need to. The pictures said it all. The images on the screen of Hugh lying prone on the floor in obvious agony, surrounded by Italian players, coaches and medics, anguished looks on each of their faces, told Monty everything he needed to know. There was no way Hugh would be fit to play against England. Only a day earlier, every single player in the England squad had agreed to give up access to any electronic communication device that they owned – mobile phones, laptops and tablets – for the duration of the World Cup. They had all agreed that for as long as they remained in the tournament, their minds should be totally focused on football and nothing else. As a result, Monty had been completely unaware of h...

A different kind of media interest Upon hearing that he’d first been called into the England squad for the World Cup, Monty had imagined that turning up at the national team’s St George’s Park base for the first time would have been almost as nerve-wracking as making his Premier League debut for Westpool Athletic had been. Although some of his club teammates were also in the squad, and he had played against most of the other selected players before, as the only uncapped member of the travelling party he was fully aware that he would be under pressure to prove himself to his more experienced, and largely better known, teammates. He was equally determined to demonstrate to his peers that he deserved to be in the squad every bit as much as they did. Due to his grandparent’s bickering, Monty had actually felt more relieved than nervous upon parking his car outside the gleaming new home of English football. He was just glad to be getting away from his dysfunctional family – Nonno and...

National news Surprises can be great. The news that Monty had been picked for the England squad had come completely out of the blue. Yet being informed by the national team manager that he’d been included in the squad easily ranked as one of the best moments of his entire life. However, the surprise that awaited the young defender when he walked into his local newsagents the morning after the disastrous family gathering held at his parents’ house was, shall we say, somewhat less pleasant. Monty had become used to seeing his face on the front and back pages of national newspapers during the past week. He had been the only major surprise inclusion in England’s World Cup squad and, as if that wasn’t a big enough story on its own, the fact that his elder brother would be playing for a rival team in England’s group had sent the British media into a state of frenzy. Over the past few days, both Capulet brothers had lost count of the number of times they’d been asked by one journali...

An unexpected conversation The phone call had come while Monty was receiving a massage in the Westpool Athletic treatment room. Monty, along with the rest of the players, always received a massage the day after a match, just to help loosen any tight muscles. He’d heard his phone ringing and asked his teammate, Jacob Anderson, to answer it and take a message while the masseuse finished off his work.   When, standing in the changing room a few minutes later, Jacob told Monty who had been on the phone, the young defender was certain that his teammate must have been joking. After all, in recent months Jacob had developed a reputation for being Westpool Athletic’s main practical joker. This, Monty was sure, would just turn out to be another one of the team’s star striker’s ‘ jokes .’ “I’m telling you the truth, Monts, I promise,” stated Jacob as earnestly as possible, while Monty continued to stare disbelievingly at him. “Whatever you say, Jacob,” Monty replied in a voice as disbel...

Hugh Hugh Capulet had been completely obsessed with football for as long as he – or anyone else for that matter – could remember. From the very moment that Hugh had taken his first unsteady steps at just over ten-months old, a ball had rarely been far from his feet. As a baby, he would simply refuse point blank to fall asleep unless a football was first placed in his cot, while few, if any, childhood photos of Hugh exist in which he’s not either kicking or dribbling a ball. In fact, there’s probably more chance of seeing a photo of the Loch Ness Monster and Bigfoot sitting together whilst enjoying a quiet cup of tea on the lawns of Buckingham Palace, than there is of seeing a picture of an adolescent Hugh without a ball somewhere near his feet. Given the extent of his obsession, it’s probably not all that surprising to learn that Hugh began to exhibit a talent for football before he was even out of nappies. He was as comfortable dribbling a ball as most babies are dribbling the...