England boost as Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice won’t face punishment after gesture and clash with Slovakia boss
JUDE BELLINGHAM and Declan Rice will NOT face a ban after respective flashpoints against Slovakia.
England squeezed into the quarter-finals after a 2-1 extra-time win over Slovakia.
They only earned a spot in extra-time after Bellingham scored a stunning overhead kick in the 95th minute.
But during his celebrations, the Real Madrid star appeared to make a crude gesture towards the bench.
However, Bellingham – who turned 21 on Saturday – revealed the gesture was in fact a joke aimed towards close friends who were at the game.
He wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: “An inside joke gesture towards some close friends who were at the game. Nothing but respect for how that Slovakia team played tonight.”
Bellingham also included a yawning, ‘X’ and handshake emoji alongside his post.
SunSport understands Bellingham is not expected to face punishment for the gesture.
Meanwhile, at the full-time whistle Rice was involved in a heated bust-up with Slovakia boss Francesco Calzona that led to him having to be held back by Aaron Ramsdale.
Calzona said the spat came from Rice refusing to move away when he wanted to speak to the referee, leading to him shoving the Arsenal midfielder away.
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He said: “Rice was supposed to go to the referees and leave. I had to speak to the refs and he wasn’t leaving, he carried on. But then he apologised and it was all fine.”
The 25-year-old is also unlikely to face any repercussions for the spat.
And it means that barring injury the key pair should be available to face Switzerland in the quarter-final next Saturday.
The Swiss booked their spot after beating Italy 2-0.
The best of England vs Slovakia
CHECK out all the best action from England's rollercoaster Euro 2024 last-16 win over Slovakia.
