YOU can only hope Eberechi Eze and his England team-mates were not expecting an easy few days in Spain after an exhausting season.
Although it is only Andorra in a World Cup qualifier in Barcelona on Saturday, Thomas Tuchel put his players through an unusual but excruciating end-of-season fitness test as he prepares for baking-hot temperatures at next year’s World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Although the weather was 26C here in Girona yesterday, it was far hotter inside the tent where Tuchel made his players take on a strength-sapping bike exercise.
And it came after they had swallowed a biometric tablet to allow the FA medics to get an accurate reading of how the players deal with extreme stress.
For Eze, his partying after winning the FA Cup final with Crystal Palace must have seemed like a long time ago.
The Eagles forward, 26, said: “After taking those tablets, you had to be on the bike for about 45 minutes and just had to keep going.
“They monitored your heart rate and they monitored your actual body temperature.
“It was quite difficult to do and 45 minutes is a long time on a bike.
“But it was something that was definitely helpful and it gave a bit of insight into myself and how I cope with those situations, which was interesting. It was the first time for me doing something like this.”
Chelsea forward Cole Palmer, 23, added: “It was tough. It was 36C inside the tents and we had to get to a certain watts or something on a bike and maintain it.”
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Ivan Toney knows all about heat as he plays in Saudi Arabia for Al-Ahli.
The striker, 29, said: “You can’t blast out running crazy for 90-plus minutes.
“It has to be tactical when you make the runs and these kind of things change your game a bit — but it is good.
“It’s different but I’m getting used to it now.
“You have to change your game a little bit and maybe you have to sit back for a bit or keep the ball for a bit.”
The team have certainly enjoyed themselves at this luxury golf resort outside Girona since they arrived, after watching the F1 in Barcelona on Sunday.
The Camiral Golf and Wellness Centre is set to stage the Ryder Cup in 2031.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola was playing golf here at an event with Gianfranco Zola a few days ago, while the football centre used to be Girona’s training ground and Brighton and City have stayed here in pre-season.
England will remain on site until tomorrow afternoon before heading to Barcelona to prepare for the match at Espanyol’s stadium.
Tuchel’s team then play Senegal in a friendly at the City Ground in Nottingham on Tuesday.
Palace star Eze is certainly enjoying life with England. Scoring his first goal, on his tenth appearance in the 3-0 win over Latvia in March, was clearly a big deal.
It’s only when you speak to fans and you see what it means to them . . . that’s when you really understand how amazing it is.
Eberechi Eze on FA Cup joy
He said: “Yes, a special moment for me. I scored my first goal and that brought more confidence.
“I’d say it followed throughout the rest of the season, which was good for me and for Palace.”
When you mention that historic Cup final win for Palace against Manchester City, Eze just cannot stop smiling.
He said: “For me, the most special thing is when you speak to fans and you see the fans’ faces and you get to understand what it truly means to them.
“Of course, winning as a player is important — and being part of the first team to do it for Palace is definitely special.
“But it’s only when you speak to fans and you see what it means to them . . . that’s when you really understand how amazing it is.”
Yet will he still be at Palace next season? Spurs are one of several clubs interested in him.
Asked if he is thinking about his future, Eze gave little away.
He said: “At the moment, not so much.
“I feel like I’m here on camp with England and I’m trying to work here on camp with England.
“Those things will take care of themselves.”
THE thrills and spills of the summer transfer window are finally here – with some huge deals already in the pipeline.
Liam Delap has completed a £30m move from Ipswich to Chelsea.
Elsewhere, Liverpool are preparing to pay the full £126m asking price to capture Florian Wirtz as soon as possible.
In other news, Man City have agreed a deal to sign AC Milan’s Tijjani Reijnders for £46.3m.
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Follow ALL the latest news, moves and completed deals with our live blog below…
THIS Hollywood actor looked unrecognisable on set of his new sports biopic – but can you guess who he is?
The 51-year-old sported a black leather jacket, slicked back hair and three Super Bowl rings on the set of his new film.
This Oscar winning actor looked very different to his usual heartthrob looks while filming in Atlanta on Wednesday.
The star was spotted strolling around the film set pulling an expression with his mouth open.
But have you worked out with A-lister this is?
It’s none other than Batman star Christian Bale.
The Hollywood star is currently shooting scenes for his new movie Madden.
He is starring alongside US megastar Nicolas Cage as they filmed the hotly-anticipated David O. Russell flick.
In costume, Christina bears a striking resemblance to his real life character – the late Al Davis, the Oakland Raiders team owner and manager – and sported a somewhat ruddy complexion.
While Nicolas was spotted in a blue and green fatsuit with long hair.
He plays Raiders head coach turned-iconic broadcaster John Madden.
Comedian John Mulaney stars as Trip Hawkins and British actress Sienna Miller as Al’s wife Carol Davis.
“The film follows Madden’s remarkable journey—from his Super Bowl-winning partnership with Al Davis and the Raiders, to creating Madden NFL, and becoming one of the most iconic voices in football history,” Amazon said in a press release.
NFL fans recently reacted to Christian and Nicholas’ shocking new looks in the upcoming movie.
“Wait, is this real?” one asked.
“Damn they actually look nothing like their actual selves,” another commented.
“That can’t be John Madden!” a third added.
Madden is directed by David O. Russell, who has been Oscar-nominated for hit movies like The Fighter and Silver Linings Playbook.
Russell also wrote the script for the film, which is based on Madden’s personal journey from being an NFL coach to an iconic broadcasting career to the face of EA Sports’ Madden NFL video game franchises.
Madden died in December 2021 at the age of 85.
The longtime owner of the Raiders, Davis, is also featured in the movie.
The fiery personality was known for his motto, “Just, win baby.”
Davis died in October 2011 at the age of 82 due to congestive heart failure.
The movie Madden also stars comedian and actor John Mulaney as Electronic Sports founder Trip Hawkins.
Last April, it was revealed that Nicolas would be cast as Madden, while Christina was later confirmed to portray the role of Davis.
