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Background |
Colombia were originally chosen as
the thirteenth hosts by the FIFA
Executive Committee on 9 June 1974 in Stockholm. However, the Colombian authorities declared
on 25 October
1982 that they could not afford to host the World Cup under the terms that FIFA demanded. Mexico were selected on 20 May 1983
in Zürich as the replacement
hosts, with unanimous votes ahead of Canada and United States, Brazil had also pulled
out, and Mexico became the
first nation to host two World Cups.
However, a severe earthquake in
September 1985, eight months before the tournament, cast doubt over Mexico's
ability to organize the event; however, the stadiums were not affected and
it was decided to go ahead with the preparations.
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The Draw |
The 24 participating teams were divided
into six groups, in which all four teams would play each other once,
at a draw conducted at Televisa television studios in Ciudad de
México on 15 December 1985.
|
Pot 1 (seeded) |
Pot 2 |
Pot 3 |
Pot 4 |
|
Mexico |
England |
Algeria |
Belgium |
|
Italy |
USSR |
Canada |
Bulgaria |
|
West Germany |
Argentina |
Denmark |
Hungary |
|
Poland |
Spain |
Iraq |
Northern Ireland |
|
France |
Paraguay |
Morocco |
Portugal |
|
Brazil |
Uruguay |
Korea Republic |
Scotland |
The top two teams
and the four best third-place finishers from the six
groups advanced to the knockout round of 16 teams.
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The Build-Up |
7 May:
18 members of the World Cup squad flew from Gatwick to Colorado for
altitude training. The remaining four Everton players stayed at home in
preparation for the FA Cup Final, three days later.
11 May: England beat a US Air Force team, 11-0. Bryan Robson and Ray Wilkins
were the only players not to take part in the game. Robson had strained
an Achilles tendon running around the hotel pathways, whilst Wilkins had
damaged knee ligaments. Glenn Hoddle was particularly impressive,
causing his manager to acclaim his talent.
"His
delivery and his touch were immaculate...Over the next three or four
weeks he is in a position to prove himself to be one of the best natural
two-footed players in Europe, if not in the world." -
The Times
12 May: Robson and Wilkins went cycling, whilst the rest of the squad played
golf. The four Everton players arrived in the evening to make up the
full squad of 22.
13 May: The squad
trained, without the Everton players, but with Robson and Wilkins.
14 May: England
beat Korea Republic, 4-1, at the Fountain Valley School. Both Robson and
Wilkins played, without any concerns, but Beardsley, Hateley, Hoddle and
Hodge all picked up injuries. Trevor Steven was the only Everton player
to appear.
16 May: Beardsley,
Hateley and Hoddle were all named in the squad to face Mexico in Los
Angeles, but Hodge had damaged ankle ligaments and was to stay in
Colorado, along with Gary Bailey (recovering from a cartilage operation)
and three Everton players (Lineker, Reid and Stevens), who were still
acclimatizing to altitude.
17 May:
England
beat Mexico, 3-0, in Los Angeles.
"'Robson's chosen men have thrown down the gauntlet'
"...it took England a mere
37 minutes to dismantle the defence, the record and the esteem of the
Mexicans." - The Times.
19 May:
Bobby
Robson submitted his squad to FIFA, four days early, despite concerns
over the fitness of Gary Bailey and Steve Hodge.
20 May: Potential
replacements for Bailey and Hodge (Martin Hodge
and Stewart Robson), were put on standby.
21 May: England's
upcoming international with Canada was switched from an artificial
surface, at Vancouver, to a grass pitch in a smaller stadium, at
Burnaby, because Bobby Robson did not want to increase the risk of any
of his players twisting or jarring anything. Steve Hodge, meanwhile,
passed his fitness test.
22 May: Whilst Gary
Bailey passed his fitness test, Bobby Robson expressed concern that
Bryan Robson had been unable to train since the game against Mexico.
''Neither
of us can tell whether he will break down when he comes back."
- The Times
23 May: The squad
arrived in Vancouver.
24 May:
England
beat Canada, 1-0, in Burnaby.
"'Even
the scare proved insipid'
"In the first half England
were listless." - The Times
26 May: The squad
flew from Vancouver to Monterrey, their Mexican base for the first round
group. Gary Lineker's left wrist was heavily strapped after severely
straining it against Canada.
27 May: England
trained at Saltillo in 36-degree Celsius heat. Lineker trained with his
arm in a sling and Robson trained separately to the rest of the squad.
28 May: England's
second string beat Monterrey, 4-1.
30 May: Lineker
trained with a fibreglass cast on his wrist.
31 May: England
played a light-hearted half-hour game against a team of eleven-year-olds
in Saltillo and drew, 5-5!
1 June: The squad
trained in the Estadio Tecnologico, with Bryan Robson appearing closer
to full fitness.
2 June: Bryan
Robson was declared fit and ready to face Portugal...
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First Phase Table
Group F |
|
Team |
P
|
W
|
D
|
L
|
F
|
A
|
GD
|
Pts
|
|
Morocco |
3 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
1 |
+2 |
4 |
|
England |
3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
1 |
+2 |
3 |
|
Poland |
3 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
3 |
-2 |
3 |
|
Portugal |
3 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
2 |
4 |
-2 |
2 |
|
2 June 1986
- both 4:00pm CST |
Morocco 0 Poland 0 [0-0]
Estadio Universitario, Monterrey (19,694) |
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3 June 1986 |
Portugal 1 England 0 [0-0]
Estadio Tecnologico, Monterrey (19,998) |
Carlos Manuel |
"E NGLAND'S SAD FLOPS
"The Portuguese goal...came
after England had failed to take advantage of a sustained period of
second half pressure.
"They probably did not
deserve to lose the game but...England did not produce the kind of
quality through the side that we had all anticipated.
"Defeat now leaves England
with a serious uphill challenge...
"...Robson seemed unable to
come to terms with the flow..." -
Daily Express, 4 June 1986
"A Worrying Start - With Missed Chances Galore!
"After dominating the game
impressively, though squandering several good chances, a momentary lapse
in defence at a critical moment gave the game away."
- Football Monthly
"Of
course it's a disappointment...If we play as well as we did today - but
take our chances, of course - we can still go through."
Bobby Robson.
"DISGRACE FOR WILKINS IN ENGLAND DRAW
"For much of the first
half, the Moroccans had looked technically superior to England and had
emphasized that they were far from tactically inept.
"...well directed,
intelligent passes, in order to make England waste precious energy
trying to get the ball.
"The Moroccans, apparently
content with a point, made little attempt to capitalize on their
numerical superiority." - Daily Telegraph, 7 June 1986
"A Draw With Underdogs Puts England On Thin Ice!
"England pressed the
self-destruct button again in Monterrey and, but for a courageous
second-half performance, might already have been eliminated from the
tournament at this early stage."
- Football Monthly
|
7 June 1986
- both 4:00pm CST |
Poland 1 Portugal 0
[0-0]
Estadio Universitario,
Monterrey (19,915) |
Smolarek |
|
11 June 1986 |
Morocco 3 Portugal 1
[2-0]
Estadio Tres de Marzo,
Guadalajara (18,000) |
Khairi (2), Krimau
Diamantino |
England
3 Poland 0 [3-0]
Estadio Tecnologico, Monterrey (22,600) |
Lineker (3) |
"SLICK ENGLAND CONFOUND THEIR CRITICS
"...significantly reshaped
team swept Poland out of their path...
"The widely criticized
4-3-3 formation was abandoned...in favour of four men in midfield and
two up front.
"...a younger,
better-balanced look...
"...exhilarating first-half
football..." - Daily
Telegraph, 12 June 1986
"England Click And Win Their Reprieve!
"England soared into the
second phase of the World Cup with an exhilarating display of attacking
football that demolished Poland in little more than half an hour."
- Football Monthly
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The
Second Phase |
|
15 June 1986
- all CST |
12:00noon -
Mexico 2 Bulgaria 0 [1-0]
Estadio Azteca, ciudad de
México (114,580) |
Negrete, Servín |
4:00pm -
Belgium 4
USSR
3 [0-1]
AET
Estádio León, Guanajuato (32,277) |
Scifo, Ceulemans, Demol, Claesen
Belanov (3
(1 pen)) |
|
16 June 1986 |
12:00noon -
Brazil
4 Poland 0 [1-0]
Estádio Jalisco, Guadalajara (45,000) |
Sócrates (pen), Josimar, Edinho, Careca (pen) |
4:00pm - Argentina 1 Uruguay 0
[1-0]
Estadio Cuauhtémoc, Puebla (26,000) |
Pasculli |
|
17 June 1986 |
12:00noon -
France 2
Italy 0
[1-0]
Estadio Olímpico Universitario, ciudad de México (71,449) |
Platini, Stopyra |
4:00pm - West Germany 1 Morocco 0
[0-0]
Estadio Universitario, Monterrey (19,800) |
Matthäus |
|
18 June 1986 |
12:00noon -
England 3 Paraguay 0
[1-0]
Estadio Azteca, ciudad de
México (98,728) |
Lineker (2), Beardsley |
4:00pm -
Spain 5 Denmark
1 [1-1]
Estadio La Corregidora, Querétaro (38,500) |
Butrageño (4 (1 pen)), Goikoetxea (pen)
J.Olsen (1 pen) |
"LINEKER PUTS ENGLAND IN LAST EIGHT
"...they assumed control in
midfield where the less-disciplined Paraguayans were outnumbered and
eventually overrun.
"...the
Paraguayans...committed more than a few cynical fouls off the ball..."
The Times, 19 June 1986
"England Power Through To The
Quarter-Finals...
"Rejuvenated England, with
the electrifying Gary Lineker once again illuminating the tournament,
shocked the impressive Paraguayans into submission and strode
confidently into the quarter-finals of the World Cup." -
Football Monthly
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Round of sixteen |
The six third place teams from the
Group phase were (A) Bulgaria (B) Belgium (C) Hungary (D)
Northern Ireland (E) Uruguay and (F) Poland.
Hungary and
Northern Ireland were the two teams that finished with the
poorest records in comparison with the other third-placed
teams and failed to progress to the second phase. |
|
Quarter Finals |
|
21 June 1986
- all CST |
12:00noon -
France 1
Brazil 1 [1-1]
AET
[1-1]
& Penalties [4-3]
Estádio Jalisco, Guadalajara (65,677) |
Platini
Careca |
|
Penalty Shoot-out:- Sócrates saved, Stopyra 1-0,
Alemão 1-1, Amoros 2-1,
Zico 2-2, Bellone 3-2, Branco
3-3, Platini missed, Júlio César hit post, Fernández
4-3 |
4:00pm -
West Germany 0 Mexico 0 [0-0]
AET
[0-0]
& Penalties [4-1]
Estadio Universitario, Monterrey (44,386) |
|
|
 Berthold
Aguirre
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Penalty Shoot-out:- Allofs 1-0, Negrete
1-1, Brehme 2-1, Quirarte saved, Matthäus
3-1, Servín saved, Littbarski 4-1 |
|
22 June 1986 |
12:00noon -
Argentina 2 England 1 [0-0]
Estadio Azteca, ciudad de
México (114,580) |
Maradona (2)
Lineker |
|
ENGLAND ARE ELIMINATED |
4:00pm -
Belgium 1
Spain 1 [1-0]
AET
[1-1]
& Penalties [5-4]
Estadio Cuauhtemoc, Puebla (45,000) |
Ceulemans
Señor |
|
Penalty Shoot-out:-
Señor 1-0,
Claesen 1-1, Eloy saved, Scifo 1-2, Chendo
2-2, Broos 2-3, Butrageño 3-3,
Vervoort 3-4, victor 4-4, L.Van der Elst
4-5. |
"ENGLAND SENT TUMBLING OUT BY MARADONA
"...if justice was to play
a cruel role in their eventual downfall, there can be little doubt that
they were beaten by a superior side.
"England...can have no
complaints about effectively being knocked out by a moment of pure and
irresistible genius." -
The Times, 23 June 1986
"ROBSON IS HAPPY TO BE STAYING ON
"England have left the
World Cup with a dignity born of experience.
"Bobby Robson: ...there is
no doubt in my mind that I'm a better international manager now than
when I started four years ago.
"This is a unique job, so different to club management. It takes you two years to
get used to it."
"Robson proved sufficiently
astute to recognise the need for a tactical change that the bulk of his
squad wanted.
"...not enough to survive
against a better side possessing the outstanding player of the
tournament..." - The Guardian, 24 June 1986
"Robson's Men Bow Out With Honour...
"At the end of the day, the
better team won. There is little point, now, in reflecting upon what
might have transpired had the referee been in a position to spot
Maradona's illicit first goal." - Football Monthly
"...I
have to say that as a striker I would probably have done the same thing."
- Gary Lineker
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The
morning after England's defeat - Daily Express headline.
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Semi
Finals |
|
25 June 1986
- 12:00pm CST |
West Germany 2 France 0 [1-0]
Estádio Jalisco, Guadalajara (47,500) |
Brehme, Völler
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26 June 1986
- 4:00pm CST |
Argentina 2 Belgium 0 [0-0]
Estadio Azteca, ciudad de
México (110,420) |
Maradona (2) |
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Third Place Play-off |
|
28 June 1986
- 12:00pm CST |
France 4 Belgium 2 [2-1]
AET
[2-2]
Estadio Cuauhtémoc, Puebla (21,500) |
Ferreri, Papin, Genghini, Amoros (pen)
Ceulemans, Claesen |
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The
1986 Final |
|
29 June 1986
- 12:00pm CST |
Argentina
3
West Germany 2 [1-0]
Estadio Azteca, ciudad de
México (114,580) |
Brown, Valdano, Burruchaga
Rummenigge,
Völler |
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England
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