Gerard Pique paying big price for party jibe

As the Spain national football squad arrived at the team hotel in Alicante ahead of Friday evening’s friendly against England, there were cheers for each of the players stepping off the bus.

Except for centre-back Gerard Pique, who was met by loud whistles from the 300 who appeared to have gathered just to barrack their own team’s player.

At the pre-match press conference, Vicente Del Bosque’s tone was angrier than his words suggest: “This current is now impossible to stop,” the Spain coach said. “We’ve reached the point where it would be unusual if they did not whistle Gerard Pique. I believe the best thing to do is not to worry about it, or speak any more about it.”