It is not every day a friendly gardener shows you his handgun and his wife switches on her mobile phone to reveal pictures of her starring in a local television series called The Lick (“Taking you inside the real Miami”).
Welcome to America.
The chatty gardener and his wife were in the back of a truck in Miami Shores, sheltering from the storm sweeping in from the Atlantic. The downpour forced the cancellation of England’s training session at Barry University across the road from the truck. Welcome to the hurricane season.
This started on June 1, an occasion marked on Florida TV networks with special segments and eliciting debate over why England considered Miami a suitable place for outdoor training sessions. “This is not unexpected,’’ said the gardener, who has worked in Miami Shores for 16 years. “Why did they train here?”
The couple had taken pity on visiting reporters who had gone to check on the facilities after questions were raised locally about the suitability of the Barry University pitch. The invitation to take respite in the back of the truck, squeezed between mowers, rakes and a machete, was gratefully accepted.
The pair were surprised England had chosen Miami. Roy Hodgson’s plan to train in the Sunshine State was rooted in logic, and stirring little censure when announced. England’s manager felt it offered similar conditions to the ones his players will experience in their opening World Cup game in Manaus against Italy on June 14.
It was certainly humid but the precipitation was so powerful, turning roads briefly into waterways, sending passers-by scurrying for cover and making security guards don sou’westers as if manning trawlers not gates, that training was impossible.
In classic English sports-day fashion – “if wet, in village hall” – Hodgson led the players inside and they worked out in the Barry University gym. The Football Association insisted that this was always the plan, a claim greeted with considerable scepticism, as the pitch had been set up with all the usual sponsors’ paraphernalia. England’s homage to the corporate world sat amid this historic Catholic college’s motto of “Laudare, Benedicere, Praedicare” (“to praise God, to bless His people and to preach His gospel)”.
The intention to play outside was also confirmed by the heavy police presence. Four Miami Shores police cars patrolled the road outside the perimeter fence while Barry University security guards walked around the pitch. For good measure, staff in golf buggies circled the ground.
Even if training was disrupted by the weather, England’s trip to Barry University did underline the scale of their World Cup operation.
England have brought so many people on the road that they needed two buses borrowed from Barry University academy to transport the players, coaches, skills specialists and other backroom staff from their waterfront hotel to their waterlogged training pitch.
Over the swamped road, and back in the cramped truck, conversation veered through a range of subjects. After a discussion about the availability of handguns, one of which was tucked into Mr Gardener’s belt, and the Miami film industry which briefly employed Mrs Gardener, talk turned to “soccer”. He was interested. She was not.
England have not been in the US since 2005, so long ago that Zat Knight was at centre-half for the friendly with Colombia in New York, and ticket sales for the two friendlies here at the Sun Life stadium are flowing slower than the rivulets along the gutters yet the rising interest in soccer is inescapable.
Jürgen Klinsmann’s decision to cut Landon Donovan from his World Cup roster was huge news across the States, fostering plenty of adverse criticism for the coach of the US men’s national team. It was a major call, a real shock and if the US labour in Brazil, Klinsmann will come in for serious questioning. The fact that it was such a talking point highlighted the country’s reverence for Donovan and the increasing popularity of soccer.
Klinsmann’s side will be followed by thousands of fans in Brazil, further highlighting the sport’s prominence in the US. The arrival of David Villa at New York City, and the imminent signing of Frank Lampard, will simply add further to the sport’s standing.
This being a World Cup warm-up, and this being America, there was inevitable chat about David Beckham, formerly of LA Galaxy and very much a celebrity beloved by the American public for his commitment as a sportsman, his cheery, occasionally self-mocking performances on talk shows, his embracing of American life and the reality of his being a strong father figure to his sons.
The FA has become slightly sensitive about too many questions being directed Hodgson’s way about the former England captain but it is simply a sign of enduring affection for old Goldenballs here and at home.
Beckham is not in Miami this week although the talk of the town is about his plans for an MLS team. There is a great desire for a Beckham franchise here but there have been problems over the proposed site of the stadium in a pretty park.
Dalia Lagoa, president of the association at 900 Biscayne, told the Miami Herald: “The most appealing thing about the park is that you can take a stroll down Biscayne Boulevard and there’s trees and grass and water right there, not hidden behind some monstrosity. I can’t imagine Beckham asking the Mayor of London to put a soccer stadium in Kensington Park, St James’ Park or in Hyde Park. He’d get run out of town.’’ But Beckham has many backers and he rarely fails. The demand for soccer in Miami will be met.
There are also calls Stateside for them to host the 2022 World Cup following more embarrassment heaped on Qatar and Fifa. The FA would love it but there is an issue with continental rotation and also the fact that in the interests of fairness, the tournament should go to a nation which has not staged it before. England has. So has the US. Qatar has not but everyone now accepts it would be an affront to the sport if it were held there.
The most obvious contender, a nation voted out early in that shameful Zurich poll of Dec 2, 2010, is Australia, which possesses the infrastructure, the stadiums and an intensifying passion for the game. The fear remains that Fifa may stick with Qatar or, if it acknowledges the escalating opprobrium, move it to the US. It will be guaranteed a warm, if currently slightly wet, welcome from America.