Penalties to decide this s-final
Former England defender Lescott believes Croatia-England meeting will end in a shoot-out
The World Cup semi-final between England and Croatia tomorrow morning (Singapore time) will go down to the wire.
That is the opinion of former England and Manchester City defender Joleon Lescott, who was in town yesterday as an ambassador for the Citizens.
The 35-year-old, who amassed 26 caps for England over a six-year period, told The New Paper: "Croatia will believe they can win as England do, and they'll try to see the game out into extra-time and into penalties.
"No semi-final is going to be a cruise but, if it goes down to penalties, we hope that will play into England's hands."
The Three Lions entered the competition with the worst penalty shoot-out record in World Cup history, having lost all three they had previously contested.
But they ended their hoodoo last week when they beat Colombia 4-3 on spot-kicks to end an abysmal run dating back to 1990, sending England fans into raptures.
Coincidentally, the year 1990 was also the last time England reached a World Cup semi-final, in which they lost 4-3 to West Germany in a shoot-out in Italy.
...if it goes down to penalties, we hope that will play into England's hands.Ex-England defender Joleon Lescott
Should tomorrow's semi-final go down to spot-kicks, the Croats could have a psychological edge, having won their previous two games against Denmark and Russia on penalties.
Despite that, Lescott remains optimistic about England's chances.
He said: "There's an intensity and pace that England have shown which hasn't been the case in recent years.
"Winning the World Cup would be the plan ideally and, why not, it's the best competition that we've had in recent years."
Lescott's comments will fuel England's hopes of a first World Cup triumph since 1966, a far cry from the gloom that has surrounded them in recent years after lacklustre showings at major tournaments.
Lescott was speaking at a publicity event at Singapore's ArtScience Museum, where City and water tech company Xylem announced a global partnership that will last until 2022.
Through the partnership, Xylem aims to raise awareness about pressing global water challenges and solutions, and its branding will feature at the club's Etihad Stadium on match days and also at the City Football Academy.
The partnership will also involve City's women's team and their sister club, New York City FC.
They will also work with Manchester City on Xylem Watermark projects, such as building water towers in communities around the world without access to clean water.
Said Damian Willoughby, senior vice-president of partnership at City Football Group: "Manchester City and Xylem share a common commitment to operating in a sustainable and innovative way, whilst enhancing the lives of people in our communities around the world.
"We want to not only think about how to approach water, but (also) how we can put a spotlight on the debate on water."
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