England’s World Cup medal gesture, Saka walks away, coach fights back tears | Football | Sport

1. The 10-goal thriller: England bounced back from their heartbreaking semi-final exit by taking down tournament-favorites France in a wild 6-4 spectacle in Miami. Bukayo Saka stole the show, firing home a spectacular first-half hat-trick to help secure the bronze medal.

2. The medal ceremony: A heartwarming moment caught the cameras during the podium presentation when veteran keeper Jason Steele was accidentally missed during the initial medal distribution. Morgan Rogers, Jude Bellingham, and Jordan Henderson immediately noticed and pulled him up on stage so he wouldn’t miss out on the celebrations.

3. Saka’s blunt interview walkout: The sting of missing out on the final was still clearly lingering during the post-match press duties. Bukayo Saka cut a BBC interview short and walked away after the presenter awkwardly claimed a bronze medal was “at least” something.

4. The handwritten squad poem: In a touching post-tournament tribute, Jude Bellingham shared a handwritten poem titled “The Lion’s Way” on Instagram. The defiant, emotional piece was uniquely penned for the team by Michael Chandler—England’s official squad driver in Kansas.

5. Bellingham’s defiant promise: Accompanying the poem, Bellingham voiced immense gratitude for the traveling support and urged the nation to maintain its newfound unity. He capped off the message with a fierce vow for the future, promising that the squad will achieve great things as long as they stand together.

6. An emotional half-time interview: Assistant manager Anthony Barry was visibly fighting back tears during a remarkably raw half-time chat with the BBC. Normally recognized for his blunt, hard-hitting critiques, Barry completely flipped the script to heap praise on the squad.

7. Playing through the heartbreak: Barry expressed immense pride in the team, revealing that they were playing the bronze medal match with “broken hearts” after their devastating semi-final loss to Argentina. He added that watching the players pull together such a performance despite their grief was an absolute privilege.

READ MORE: Emotional England coach on verge of tears and tells BBC of ‘broken hearts’ at World Cup