Panama head coach Hernan Dario Gomez sees no reason why England’s possible starting line-up being leaked ahead of Sunday’s game should be any advantage to his players.
Gareth Southgate admonished some members of the media after a team sheet hinting at changes in his XI for the meeting in Nizhny Novgorod was pictured and then made public. Gomez, though, insists it will make little difference who starts for the Three Lions due to the quality they have in the squad.
“I think it doesn’t give me any advantage,” he told a news conference. “Each and every coach needs to make sure they’re 100 per cent ready, regardless of the opponent. My concern is that my players work well, that they stay true to their style and keep up their good work. We’re looking at videos of our opponents but what they do isn’t a priority for us. It doesn’t matter who plays; the replacement will be just as good anyway. I’m going to focus on every single one of them. All of their players are stars.”