England’s World Cup opponents involved in heated confrontation hours before Three Lions clash

Two Panama players were forced to be separated during a heated clash in training on the eve of their match against England.

Cecilio Waterman and Jose Luis Rodriguez argued and pushed each other as they prepared for Saturday’s World Cup game.

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Panama take on the Three Lions, live on talkSPORT, but the North American minnows’ preparation has not gone as planned.

It is unclear how the incident occurred, but Rodriguez appeared to take issue with Waterman as he hobbled on the pitch.

And after being brushed off with a hand to the arm, Waterman retaliated and pushed his teammate away from him.

Rodriguez was then ushered away as Waterman was held back by another of his teammates to stop things from escalating.

He would go on to try to confront Rodriguez again soon after, pointing his finger at him and angrily shouting.

Two more Panama stars were forced to intervene next, as the pair continued to argue and try to get to each other.

Eventually, Waterman was pushed away by his teammates, and he walked back and forth, calming himself down.

The incident has not come at an ideal time for Panama, as they are set to play their final match of the World Cup.

They are already eliminated after being beaten by Croatia and Ghana in their two Group L games so far.

England are their next opponents on Saturday, and the Three Lions will be buoyed by the apparent fractures in the camp.

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End of the road

This would not have been the way Panama would have wanted to end their time in the USA and the World Cup.

The unsavoury scenes are likely to be worked out before their meeting with England on Saturday, but they are not ideal.

This summer’s tournament is the only the second time Panama have qualified, following their first appearance in 2018.

1-0 losses to both Croatia and Ghana have already sent them home though, with the Three Lions their final match.

talkSPORT will have live coverage of the game, with Adrian Durham your host from the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

Commentary of the action will be coming from Jim Proudfoot and former England captain Stuart Pearce.

To tune in to talkSPORT or talkSPORT 2 through the website, click HERE for the live stream. 

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