The morning after the night before allows a bit of reflection.
England drew, it was pretty dull and yet now if they beat Wales they would finish top of the Group with seven points which anyone would have taken beforehand. They could lose and still go through just as long as they don’t get battered and, you never know, but second place sometimes gives you a better path in the knock-out stages. It certainly did four years ago in Russia.
The positives were the back four, Harry Maguire in particular, and Declan Rice played well but there weren’t too many others…Personally, I thought the booing at the end was over the top but I can’t criticise England fans who have paid so much to be here, given great support and it’s bloody tough to organise the trip.
But I really wanted to talk about the stadium. It’s hard to contextualise something if you’re not here but the Al Bayt Stadium is really something else…
It’s in the middle of the desert for a start, holds nearly 70,000 and is just vast. It’s a proper stadium.
Now, amid all of the controversies and tragedy, it’s hard to talk about stadiums here in a positive sense. There’s been so much politics in play (rightly so, in my view, because you can’t just move on) that we’ve barely talked about the whole World Cup experience.
Clearly, not everyone will agree but that is a proper World Cup stadium. The sound system was immense and made such a noise with pumping music, fireworks and a light show. It did create an atmosphere. The England fans loved it, were singing loudly and I felt, for the first time, that I was actually at a World Cup.
If you speak to fans - and I’ve spoken to plenty - I think the majority would say they are actually having a great time.
The Souk Wakif is the place to be (in the centre of town) where everyone congregates and it’s a traditional place with markets, coffee shops, restaurants and bars.
You can easily find a pint in Doha, it’s very simple and perfectly normal. You just choose the right place, present ID (in some but not all cases) and you’re away. A few fans had beers before the England game, turned up in the mood and then had a more normal football experience.
But, please, can we remember we’re in a different country, here? A different culture. The people on the ground are just so friendly.
In my experience, that’s often the Muslim way - to treat people like family, to embrace friends and neighbours and, for example, the reception staff at our apartments are just so lovely. A bit simplistic maybe, but that’s my experience.
We shouldn’t expect everyone to behave and live like us or be a little bit strange for their lives not to be dominated by booze and if they want to leave a match at half time… it’s different to us but we don’t get everything right, do we?
Getting to the Al Bayt Stadium - and that’s where England will effectively be based if they win the Group - is a different challenge.
The Metro doesn’t go that far, there’s shuttle buses but there’s cabs and so much parking. It’s a long way from central Doha - about 40 miles - and looks like some sort of strange palace in the desert.
But you really know you’re far from home - and maybe that’s the point of hosting a World Cup in a different place. Not many of us would have chosen Qatar but I do think a lot of fans are enjoying it.
