Cole Palmer, 24, revealed he fell asleep at halftime during England's 3-2 round-of-16 World Cup victory over Mexico at Estadio Azteca. The Chelsea playmaker was a surprise omission from Thomas Tuchel's 26-man squad for the tournament in North America.

"Obviously I was away, and the times were a bit mad in America," Palmer said on Chelsea's preseason tour in Australia. The match kicked off at 2 a.m. GMT after storms delayed it an hour. Asked if he watched, Palmer prompted laughter: "I did, but I fell asleep at halftime."

England were eventually knocked out in the semifinals by Argentina. Palmer said the snub will serve as extra motivation: "Naturally, if someone tells you that you're essentially not good enough to get in the squad, then you're going to try extra hard."

He is now preparing for the new season under Xabi Alonso at Chelsea, who face Tottenham in their next friendly on Saturday.