England were set to square off with Mexico in the World Cup round of 16 at 1am British Standard Time; however, it has now been reported that the match is set to be delayed.
Over the past few days there has been heavy speculation around this World Cupfixture being either delayed or brought forward due to weather concerns.
In the days building up it had been reported FIFA may have moved the match forward six hours to ensure it would not be impacted by stormy conditions; however, it was announced that the game kick off time would remain as what had been originally planned.
Reports on the day of the clash had suggested the game could be delayed due to the heavy rain and because of the possibility of lightning.
Lightning is seen during a weather delay before clash between Mexico and Ecuador. Image credit: Getty
Several different times had been suggested for when the game could kick off if it were delayed, and now it has been confirmed fans will have to wait for the beginning of the clash by an hour.
Now the match will begin at 7pm local time, which means that it will kick off at 2am BST.
This is just the latest piece of drama for England ahead of this round of 16 clash in the World Cup, as there were concerns raised about the accommodation being laid siege upon by Mexican fans overnight to ensure the English side did not get the required eight hours of sleep.
It had been reported that Mexico fans were planning to head to the England hotel to blast noise from several instruments, speakers, and vehicles.
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Meanwhile, aside from the disrupted preparation for the match, there has been a lot of concern about how Thomas Tuchel’s side deals with the altitude at the Azteca Stadium, with one expert suggesting they ‘will suffer.’
However, England makes it look like this fixture is a chance to make history by becoming only the third team to win at the Azteca Stadium against Mexico since 1966 and to banish the demons of their defeat to Argentina at the same venue in 1986 when Diego Maradona stole the show.
A win after all this disruption would be seen as a huge mentality boost, and so it could help grow confidence and belief that they can win their first World Cup in 60 years.
