English and Spanish fans unite in defeat
On a crowded Parisian train, England and Spain fans, united in their disappointment, locked arms.
The English fans started singing, first jumping up and down and rocking the sides of the carriage.
Initially, the Spanish supporters seemed confused, struggling to understand the slurred words in a foreign tongue.
And then they understood and joined in…
Don't take me home,
Please don't take me home,
I just don't wanna go to work,
I wanna stay here,
And drink all your beer
Please don't, please don't, take me home.
The scene was genuinely funny, an uplifting end to a sombre night for both countries.
The red-eyed Spanish supporters were on their way back from the Stade de France, where Italy had knocked out Vicente Del Bosque's lacklustre artists just hours earlier.
Three Lions fans, a little unsteady on their feet and grinning inanely, had left the Stade de France fan zone, where a giant screen magnified England's horrific loss to Iceland.
Within minutes of exchanging commiserations, they were best friends forever, Spanish and English cousins, part of the same European family (at least in a football sense) and sharing the grief and bitter dejection.
The songs kept on coming. Some were obvious. Will Grigg's on Fire now gets sung whenever two rival countries meet for the first time, like a bizarre United Nations pledge.
French children, returning home after a night out with their families, even joined in. The infectious "na-na-na-na-nas" cross all language barriers.
The Spaniards then kicked off with the hilariously daft "Yaya … Yaya Toure, Kolo … Kolo Toure" etc, which was a welcome, surreal addition to the repertoire as neither player has a connection with either country or the Euros
Within seconds, English and Spanish fans were waving arms in the air for Yaya and then bending down low for Kolo, obviously, much to the amusement of Parisians, quickly whipping out mobile phones to record the merry madness.
Without a doubt, this is the best of Euro 2016, a tiny capsule of joy released away from the stadiums and the TV cameras and enjoyed by visitors and locals alike.
England's abysmal performance against Iceland generated the usual splenetic reaction from furious punters and apoplectic writers alike (including this one) and with good reason.
But the rage against Roy Hodgson's malfunctioning machines, coupled with those thuggish scenes in Marseilles, overshadows the obvious fact that most England fans just want to have fun.
Frankly, Euro 2016 promises to be an improved spectacle without Hodgson's guileless, witless plodders staggering around like emaciated zombies.
But France will certainly miss most England fans.
Unfortunately, as the song goes, they've got to go home and return to work, eventually.
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