World Cup Day Twelve: The Beginning Of The End For The Groups

Fourteen goals in four matches today. Who said this was boring? Even if the majority of matches were dead rubbers.

Brazil qualified with a solid victory over Cameroon inspired by Neymar. Unfortunately my prediction of a final with Brazil beating Chile will not be fulfilled as Chile are the team that stands between the illustrious hosts and a berth in the quarter finals. After rather indifferent performances in their prior group matches, Brazil really kicked into gear against Cameroon and took them to pieces. The last sixteen beckons.

As it does for Mexico, who beat Croatia in the only match today that meant anything. If Croatia had won, they would have gone through. It was a tempestuous match with a late red card for Croatia showing their desire to qualify. Mexico, to their credit, showed that they will be formidable opponents when they face the Netherlands in the next round. That will be an interesting match to watch.

Having already qualified, neither Chile nor the Netherlands needed to play their strongest sides against each other in their final group match. The Dutch showed their strength in depth by brushing aside Chile and ensuring they topped the group. They next face Mexico and, with a full strength team, you fancy them to go far in this World Cup. Chile face Brazil and will need everything they possess to progress further. If they beat Brazil, the locals will not be pleased.

Spain have won a match! It was against Australia in a dead rubber of a game, but that won't deter them from saying that they have a great team, which they don't. Australia have looked decent but they came up against an attack that needs no introduction. There was even a goal for Torres too. He must be delighted.

So, we wait on the outcome of the rest of the matches and see how the knockout phase falls into place. There are more goals to come, and more incredible football.

World Cup Day Eleven: Excitement Interspersed With The Banal

More great matches today, but I believe we have a contender for the dullest game of the tournament amongst them. Shall we continue?

Belgium beat Russia with a late goal two minutes from time. This, by no means, shows this match to be end to end stuff with on team pipping the other at the death. It was dull, uninteresting and lifeless for eighty odd minutes. Belgium are dark horses and they have now confirmed their place in the last sixteen, but it was not a vintage display worthy of champions in the making. Russia were not without blame in this game. They rarely threatened and were toothless when they did come forward. Russia now have to beat Algeria in their final group match to progress after their equally lacklustre draw against South Korea.

Portuguese goals bookended their draw against the United States. Again, another fantastic display of attacking football from both teams. However, watching Portugal play makes you wonder what might have happened were Sweden to have qualified in their place. Beaten by Germany in their first match, they needed to prove a point against the US and instead did the complete opposite. Standing on the precipice of qualification for the last sixteen must be a strange place for America, but it comes as no surprise to those of us who have already seen the giant killing teams in this World Cup.

South Korea v Algeria has all the hallmarks of being the last game on Match Of The Day, right before the Football League Show. Any belief that this could have been dull were quickly dispelled by half time as the Algerians raced into a three nil lead at half time. Then when South Korea scored five minutes after the restart the game kicked into life. Korea were in the ascendency and only brought back to earth by an Algerian goal against the run of play which put them back in the safe zone. Korea were undeterred and found time for another goal before the end of he natch but it was too little too late for Korea. I cannot call who will join Belgium in qualifying.

Bring on the last round of matches!

World Cup Day Ten: Titans Shaken

This tournament just keeps getting better. The final match featured today is the only time I've ever seen my dad get excited about a football match. He really got into it. If my dad can get into this World Cup then anyone can.

Let's start with a result that I was somewhat surprised by. Nigeria beat Bosnia Herzegovina. I have to say that it's a shame Bosnia will not be progressing to the next round, they have a wealth of attacking talent which was successfully blunted by a Nigerian defence which just wants to qualify. The goal from Odemwingie was good and worthy of celebration. The last match against Argentina will be interesting.

Talking of Argentina, they needed a moment of individual brilliance by none other than Lionel Messi himself to beat Iran. He wants to cement his place as the best player to have played the game in his generation and he can't do that without a World Cup winners medal. That's a shame, simply because whilst he is deserving of one, the rest of the team aren't. Iran looked great and they took the match to the wire. It definitely wasn't a situation where they parked the bus, in fact it was the complete opposite. Iran consistently pushed forward and put Argentina on the back foot. Argentina are unlikely to make the semis the way they're playing.

Finally, Germany came up against Ghana in a pulsating and totally intoxicating match that seemed destined to be just another match after the first half but exploded after the interval. It was proper end to end football and you really couldn't pick between the two.  A mixture of crosses and long range shots with cheeky through balls, this match had it all. Enough to have my dad jumping at every missed opportunity by both teams. So far, the match of the tournament, and that's saying a lot when you consider how many excellent matches we've seen so far this year.

Let it continue for many more games this year!

World Cup Day Nine: Local Derby Time

There have been loads of goals in this World Cup. Many have been amazing goals, worthy of the top tier of world football. It's definitely the best Cup I've ever watched and it's even got those beautiful upsets that can only happen under these conditions.

One of those surprises have been Costa Rica. Their victory over Italy was everything any football fan ever dreamed of. Tenacious defence coupled with a ferocious attack is something the Italians themselves have been famous for. In the old days of Cannavaro and Matterazzi, Italy didn't mess about in defense and Pirlo and Inzaghi ruled the roost up front. In Joel Campbell, Costa Rica have a serious runner and in intelligent playmaker to boot. In Gamboa, they have a defender who is a proper no nonsense man the like of which England used to produce in swathes. I am so looking forward to seeing them in the next round, it's exciting.

Ecuador managed to do what England couldn't and beat Honduras to tip themselves in favour of qualification for the next round. A somewhat laborious victory after going a goal down, but we'll deserved as they fought hard and managed the two goals needed. Ecuador face France next up, so I doubt they'll go through.

Switzerland and France faced each other in a rare local derby. France look extremely impressive this year. As I always say, they're due a good World Cup as the last one was dreadful. Goals flew in from every corner of the park. Benzema and Giroud in amongst them. They are looking good value for money this year and there's no reason why they can't progress far. Their victory over Switzerland, even though they conceded twice, was better to watch than the Netherlands against Spain as they picked off a team with professionals under the age of a hundred.

It's an exciting prospect as all the matches open up. Bring on the next round!

World Cup Day Eight: Four More Years Of Hurt

Why do we put ourselves through this? There were sections of the English population who believed that, because there was no pressure on us this time around and we'd had an undefeated qualifying campaign, we could go on and do extremely well this time around. Maybe even win the damned thing. Alas, that was not to be, as we were knocked out by an inspired display by Luis Suarez.

However, before I get around to reviewing our woeful excursion to the tropics, there are two other matches I need to cover (along with an apology, this is somewhat later than anticipated). So let's start with Japan and their attempt to beat man-down Greece in their Group C match. Greece have only won a single World Cup match in eight attempts and Japan have moved past the group stages before but the Euro 2004 champions weren't so easy to break down. Greece had the better of the chances straight after going down to ten men and might have scored were it not for Katsouranis and his misjudged tackling. It's always difficult to play a full half when someone has been sent to the showers early, but ex-Man City striker Georgios Samaras very nearly put them a goal up after the restart. As it was, both Japan and Greece have been left with an opportunity to qualify. However, I believe that the Ivory Coast stand a better chance.

Speaking of the Ivory Coast, they were many's dark horses for this tournament. Now, I'm not saying it's the new psychic octopus, but I was playing Football Manager the other day and it predicted that Brazil would beat Columbia in the final. On the face of it, that seams believable seeing as Columbia are topping their group and saw off the Elephants from West Africa in a nail-biting second half that showed real grit and determination to get through to the next round. Ivory Coast needed a consolation Gervinho goal to give them hope, something Roma know all too well about this season. When you consider their attacking options, it's a surprise to me that Gervinho is the one to get this goal, but then Columbia did prove to be difficult to break down and it was a brilliant piece of individual skill to score. Whatever happens in the last round of games, I wish to pass on my sincere condolences to Kolo and Yaya Toure on the death of their brother, it is an awful tragedy on a family that has really inspired football throughout Africa.

Now onto the fun stuff. Where do I begin with England? Well, let's go with team selection to begin with and let's start at the back. Is there anything that Joe Hart can get right? I've seen some incredible saves in this tournament, some truly amazing goalkeeping and it makes you realize that you are watching the cream of the crop. Watching Joe Hart play is like watching David Seaman getting lobbed by Ronaldinho in 2002, you know there's a great goalkeeper there somewhere but you just can't quite see it. For Seaman, it was one tournament, and he had been good until that point. With Hart, I doubt he can cut it at the highest level, he's been poor this tournament and the last one. He needs to sort out his positioning because he is constantly being caught in no man's land when crosses are being delivered. With the back four, Gary Cahill and Glen Johnson had decent matches. I'm not a big fan of either of them, but I can see that they will be part of the England team for many years and I believe they deserve to be. Leighton Baines had an excellent season for Everton, but showed that he is mere mortal on the international stage up against Italy and against Uruguay. I can see the pace of Costa Rica tearing through his flimsy defence without even trying, and that scares me. Luke Shaw would have been a better bet, but if you're looking for an all-rounder at left-back, then Roy Hodgson should have considered Keiran Gibbs. He may not be as attacking as Baines, but he's a shedload better defensively. I'm biased, obviously, but there are few who could disagree on the merits of the last two matches. Moving on, why, for the love of God, would anyone in their right mind play Jordan Henderson in two consecutive matches at the World Cup? He offers nothing to the team. He's there to make up the numbers. If Hodgson was that desperate to make up the numbers, he had two better midfielders in Lampard and Wilshere that could have made a huge difference going forward. In those two players, there's enough attacking strength to really push the opposition and force them into closing down the midfield, thus tiring them out quicker and ensuring a few late goals. Henderson consistently looked like a deer in headlights when he got the ball. Dreadful. Gerrard also should reconsider his international future. He was a great player, and his new position at Liverpool has transformed his game and molded that team in his image, but the incident against Chelsea towards the end of the season has clearly affected him and now he can chalk up another assist for Suarez to his resumé. With the attackers, Sterling looked very impressive, as did Sturridge and Rooney, but only two goals in two games gives pause for thought about how effective they are together. Welbeck certainly looked out of place and a poor season at Utd is very much to blame for that.

England out, but Costa Rica sail through to the next round. So they should do its a delight to watch. Again, sorry for lack of anything these last few days, but I'm going to catch up this evening and move on.

World Cup Day Seven: Holders Humiliated, Again

Sorry this post is a little late today, I'm still trying to get over the incredible events of yesterday. What an amazing match and the official end of an era.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves and start with another match, Cameroon v Croatia. This was a goalfest, and a glorious one at that. Let's be honest here, bar Samuel Eto'o, Cameroon have no world class players. Yes, they've got players who ply their trade in the upper echelons of European football but none of them a consistently fighting for titles at those clubs. Croatia, on the other hand, have a wealth of experience in title challenges and the difference between the two sides was very much on display throughout this emphatic victory.

Wow, there were a few great teams on display yesterday. Australia may be the lowest ranked team in the tournament but you wouldn't have guessed it after the match yesterday. An incredible end to end game against a team that dismantled the reigning champions only a few days ago. The Dutch, to their credit, contributed to one of the most enjoyable and entertaining matches of this tournament, which is saying something. The winner wasn't especially late which meant there was still over twenty minutes of football to watch. Twenty minutes which didn't lose the tempo of the previous seventy. It's a shame to see Australia out of the World Cup, but the Netherlands are joined by Chile in the last sixteen.

Talking of Chile, they were imperious in their ruthless attack against the reigning champions who are out at the first hurdle. Spain were poor, they've looked poor for a while now. They're old and tired. The tiki taka style of playing hasn't worked for them. They need to get rid of the old guard and bring in fresh blood. Players like Xavi and Iniesta are looking past their best so why would you play them and not Fabregas or Cazorla? Pathetic is the best way to describe them, fully undeserved of qualifying. Chile will enjoy the next match and so they should. I reckon they will get to the semis the way they're playing.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to watch England play Uruguay. Why would you play Jordan Henderson? He's shit! More tomorrow.

World Cup Day Six: Hosts Held

Well well, I'm still here and still boring you all to death. I've heard Arsenal get the chance to thrash Crystal Palace in the opening match of next season but, as I listen to some pretty horrific Dutch singing, I've got to concentrate on this World Cup in Brazil and that fixture list.

Let's start with Group H and the highly anticipated Russia v South Korea match. Just kidding. It was like drawing blood from a stone. South Korea looked like the better side initially and did seem the more likely to score first. However, they needed some luck, and poor goalkeeping, to squeeze in the opener. After that, Russia were in the ascendency and they were rewarded six minutes later with an equaliser. By that point, Russia had found another gear and the South Korean keeper was called into action a couple more times before the final whistle to hold on for a pretty standard draw. When you consider the other two teams in this group, it could be any combination of teams that goes through.

Belgium are one of those teams and many, including yours truly, have touted them as dark horses this summer. That vision of them was slowly and painfully picked apart by an Algerian side intent on causing as much pain as possible. Sure, Belgium eventually won the game and we should applaud the mindset of those players that came back from a goal down to win, but it showed that they were vulnerable. When you consider the other European heavyweights, like the Netherlands and Germany, in the tournament it becomes quite clear that a 2-1 victory over Algeria is not going to stand them in good stead if the were to come up against one of them. Like I said, I cannot call who is going through. It will be an interesting group to watch though.

Finally onto the hosts. Brazil played Mexico and two teams more full of gentlemen you will not see at this World Cup. For two teams from an area of the world where sportsmanship is not second nature, or even third nature, there was a surprising amount of it on display at Castelão. Yes, it was one of those most tedious of scorelines, nil nil, but it was an exciting match to watch. Proper end to end football. Precisely the kind of match a football fan wants to watch, except without the goals. Brazil will qualify, but who will join them? They don't look invincible like Superman, more like Boris from Goldeneye.

Happy? No? See you tomorrow anyway.

World Cup Day Five: Another Comprehensive Trashing

Well as this World Cup steamrollers its way through the week, there are still surprises in stall. It exploded into life the other day with Spain's unceremonious defrocking at the hands of the Netherlands and has continued in the way it had been billed.

However, amongst this chaos and brilliance in the world of football, we were treated to that insanely boring of all scorelines, the nil nil draw. This snoozefest came at the expense of Iran against Nigeria. I would attempt sarcasm but I feel it would be lost. What a boring match to watch! It wasn't even close to what it could have been. The African Cup Of Nations champions playing a team that hasn't played a competitive international in a year. It should have been a walkover. All respect to Iran for their performance but they should have presented more of a goal threat against a team that didn't really offer much of their own.

Not exactly the riveting spectacle we've come to expect from this World Cup, Ghana v USA proved to be an important victory for the States. With American goals bookending the game, Ghana chipped in with one of their own on the 82nd minute. It's a tough group to qualify from, but then upsets can happen.

Which brings me nicely onto our first hatrick hero of the World Cup, Thomas Muller. What a display from Germany to not only put four goals past Portugal but also to keep a clean sheet against one of the best players this game has ever seen in Ronaldo. Germany were imperious and whoever they face in the next round should be scared. Looking at the rest of their group, I can see them winning the other two matches. Who qualifies alongside them is any guess. USA have just won and Portugal are facing a tough task with a -4 goal difference already.

This is shaping up to be a fascinating World Cup and can on get better as we move into these second round of fixtures. See you all tomorrow!

World Cup Day Four: Goal Line Technology Prevails

I must apologise for yesterday's post. I wasn't entirely sober as I was at Lord's watching the test match. Anyway, let's move on to football and the incredible events of the most recent round of fixtures. There are a few to go through so bear with me as I try my best to sound knowledgeable.

Let's kick off with the Switzerland v Ecuador match which, I have to admit, I thought would be one of the dullest matches this World Cup. However, as we have seen more often that not this year, it is anything but dull. A Swiss winner so late into the game was probably not deserved considering how well Ecuador played throughout the match but they were just not clinical enough. Ecuador are unlikely to qualify, but then looking at the Costa Rica score we really can't take anything for granted down in Brazil.

Which brings us nicely onto what you can take for granted, Lionel Messi. He didn't have the greatest of games and his goal was good, but not nearly as incredible as the media are portraying it as. They're trying to make it look like he didn't have a crap game, but he did. However, he scored, and that is certainly a constant. Bosnia and Herzegovina should not have presented as much of a threat as they did. Then this is the place if you want an upset. They'll qualify, I'd be interested in seeing how they progress from there.

Finally to France who faced a team that held England to a no score draw in Honduras. It was a deserved victory for them against a team that has proven hard to break down. With the help of goal line technology of course. It has proven that it has worked. Yes, there was a bit of confusion because it initially said that there was no goal, however, it then moved to the actual goal, which turned out to be an own goal.

France look good, they always do in alternate World Cups. The manner of their victory showed they have the strength to go far in this tournament.

This is stressful on a daily basis. Let's hope you still enjoy reading them.

World Cup Day Three: Rain In Paradise

Well how awesome is this? An incredible day of upsets and brilliance. I have to admit, I found it a real struggle to care about what happened in this World Cup but it has appeared to have come alive in the most recent round of fixtures. Let's run through them.

With four games to run through, I shall try to make this brief. Starting with Colombia v Greece. How did Greece qualify? I'll always have a soft spot for them for family reasons, but seriously?! So Greece lost, but that's not because they were rubbish. Quite the opposite actually, Colombia were incredible. Without the much-loved Radamel Falcao leading the line they were forced into leaving striking duties to Teofilo Gutierrez. What an impact he had on the game. Scoring the second goal and having a hand in the first. Who needs Falcao?

Greece, by contrast, offered very little in the way of attacking prowess. But then, that doesn't matter really, does it? They're not expected to proceed any further in this tournament. They're make weights. Except they're not. It's been 48 years since England last won a major tournament, whereas this summer marks only the 10th anniversary of Greece's victory at the European Championships. They weren't good though really.

Onto Ivory Coast and their match against 2002 hosts Japan. Err, I didn't watch this match. Sorry guys but I can only glean off it what I can from reading various news outlets. Come on, it was 2am over here! Give me a break. Turns out it was a grinding 2-1 win for The Elephants. Well done. It's also lovely to see an Arsenal alumnus score in a major tournament. Congratulations Gervinho.

So can I please move on to a current Arsenal player? I know I'm biased, and I always will be, but how incredible was Joel Campbell? He scored, he assisted, is there anything more you want from a striker? He made the Uruguay v Costa Rica match a joy to behold. Costa Rica were unplayable. Simple football allowed them to come back from 1-0 down. For their part, Uruguay were abysmal. A chronic lack of belief from their strike force, which consisted of Diego Forlan and Edison Cavani, resulted in a rather flaccid display from their entire team. If this is who England are to face on Thursday, bring it on!

Finally, the England v Italy match. The only real comments I have are that England need to learn how to hit the target when they shoot and how to score. On the flip side of my criticism lies a belief that Raheem Sterling is the future for English football. He looked incredible. Always cantering forward, even in the Manaus heat. Rooney, on the other hand, made his mark with an amazing assist that belied the fact that he was atrocious all game. Defensively, we were very solid. Phil Jagielka was, until last night, the man who scored an own goal when playing against Arsenal and I thought I would never forget that. However, last night I saw him make one of the best clearances I've ever seen. You are forgiven.

Italy were strong, undaunting and interesting to watch. I won't feel too aggrieved if England do not qualify from this group simply because it's a really tough one. This will be the best group to watch, I promise you that.

Right, I'm off to watch the cricket, see you again tomorrow!

World Cup Day Two: Well, That Happened

I enjoyed writing yesterday's post so much that I thought I might try and do this on a daily basis. Why not?

On Day Two there were three matches. The remaining match in Group A along with the two from one of the toughest groups in the tournament. I'll kick off from the beginning, with Mexico against Cameroon.

What originally looked, on paper at least, to be an exciting and compelling match to watch, it turned into a rather drab match punctuated by dodgy offside calls and a solitary goal. At least, this time, the questionable decisions by the linesman didn't prevent the right team from winning. Poor old Cameroon, they looked jaded for large swathes of the second half, almost as if they'd already lost the game. They looked spirited to begin with and I still believe that it will be between these two teams as to who will qualify from this group alongside Brazil. 

Mexico too didn't look like they're about to beat Brazil. However, were it not for those two poor offside decisions, they would have ended the night actually above Brazil in the table. What a boost that would have given them so early on in the tournament. I like Croatia, but I doubt they will qualify for the knockout stages from this group.

Moving on to the Chile v Australia match and, when you consider the prestigious company they're in with this group, neither of them are qualifying. However, last night's match was a spectacle. It was what the World Cup is all about. Passion flared and ignited the fever within the ground. Thousands of fans turned up the volume as the World Cup finally hit home in the glorious heat in Brazil.

Chile hit two in early. Then Australia came back at them with a goal before half time to set up a tense second half where you could feel that the next team to score would go on to win. The Aussies battened down the hatches and withstood the Chilean assault, throwing in a few dangerous counterattacks for good measure, up to the second minute of added time when Beausejour pounced on a rebounded shot. It was a proper cup tie. Enjoyable, rationally refereed and captivating.

Now we can move onto the big match. The rerun of 2010's Final. Spain against The Netherlands. A fixture of epic proportions, especially when you consider the bad blood between these two adversaries after Nigel de Jong's ridiculous antics the last time these two teams met in the World Cup.

I'll just come out and say it, Spain were a disgrace. I know that many a column inch will be devoted to analysing the reasons behind their awful display so I'd like to add my own, starting from the back. Casillas showed how far he's fallen since being dropped at Real Madrid. He was at fault for one of the goals and should have come out quicker for Robben's second. Ramos is ageing badly, he's nowhere near the player he used to be and it shows, badly. Pique has not had the best season at Barcelona, neither have Xavi or Iniesta who are both in their thirties. As for Diego Costa, I really believe that Chelsea have bought a real dog there. He's had a fantastic season, don't get me wrong, but he's not a world class player, he's not the man to lead Spain's line. Maybe that's the problem with Spain, they don't really have anyone who can step up to that position except Alvaro Morata, and I don't see his name on the team sheet.

Switching sides for a moment, it's easy to run out of superlatives when describing who good the Dutch were. They had a shaky first half but tore brutally into the Spanish back line in the second half. It all kick started with Robin van Persie and his incredible header before half time. Utterly brilliant. In fact, except for de Vrij and his far post header from a free kick, all the Dutch goals were incredible. Robben, a man I passionately hate, showed real composure to control the ball and bring it onto his weaker foot for his second goal.

In all, it was an exciting second day in Brazil. Now, roll on England!

Lacklustre, Pointless, Overshadowed - Welcome To The World Cup In Brazil

So last night it all kicked off. After 4 years of what seemed like endless qualifying matches (not to mention a European Championship in between) the first match of the 20th World Cup Finals kicked off. It's finally here and, for the first time ever, I couldn't give less of a shit.

Forced to sit through 96 minutes of dull, uninspiring football between two highly technical teams is painful for any football fan. It just doesn't seem right. If you don't want to know the score, you're reading the wrong article. Brazil won their opening fixture 3-1. Croatia, for their part, didn't actually get any of their own players on the scoresheet. Their contribution to the scoreline came courtesy of an extremely dangerous low cross into the Brazilian box, a tiny deflection once in and a rather clumsy attempt at a clearance by Marcelo which ended up in the back of the net. Marcelo, to his credit, would have easily cleared the ball had it not taken that tiniest deflection en route to him. As it stood, he had a shocking game.

It's tricky when Brazil are playing in a World Cup on home soil to accuse any of their players of a lack of motivation. However, if there was ever a blueprint on how not to contribute to the opening match of a World Cup, look no further than Marcelo. A highly successful left back in his own right with La Liga trophies, a Copa del Rey and now a Champion's League winner's medal to add to that, he looked every bit an amateur last night. The attitude he had on the pitch was nothing more than pitiful. It was a sorry sight. After conceding the own goal just 11 minutes into the match, he should have stood up and been counted for the rest of the game. As it was, he left it to his less experienced, but vastly more talented, teammates to cover for him. His contribution was minimal throughout and for someone who has license to roam up and down his flank as part of a now-guaranteed back five, he wasn't nearly as far up the pitch as his mirror, Dani Alves.

Talking of contributions to the match, I feel it is incredibly disappointing to see yet another important game decided by the whistle of the referee. I've always said that football referees do an incredibly difficult job, but that means they need to be the best at what they do. The World Cup refs need to be even better than that. I'm not saying that Croatia were going to win last night, I just have this belief that when a penalty is given, it should be checked and re-checked by a video referee. That shows that the proper checks have been done before giving one team a decisive decision. At the Maracana, that decision was wrong, and Fifa should stand up, say it was a wrong decision to make, apologise and show some backbone in ensuring it doesn't happen again.

That brings me nicely onto Fifa. Oh, the almighty Fifa with its very own dictator, Sepp Blatter presiding over this shambles of a World Cup. There are many times when writing these articles that I think of how much better world football would be without him. The conclusion is always the same, Sepp Blatter should no longer continue as president of Fifa. We shouldn't wait until next year, he ought to have gone years ago. His decisions on football at the highest level are some of the most ridiculous statements it is possible to hear from any statesman. I haven't looked, but I'm sure there's a video of him and all the u-turns he's made while Fifa president. He's been there so long, he drew England's name out of the envelope for the 1966 World Cup!

Blatter has to go. His comments about the allegations of corruption within Fifa being racist were just a smokescreen designed to keep anybody away from an investigation in fear of them being labelled a racist. A very good trick as anyone who goes near it now will be accused of being racist. This plays nicely into Blatter's hands because then they don't start looking into him and his personal life. He had something to do with it, I just can't prove it.

All in all, this just means that I don't give a monkeys about this year's World Cup. I'll support England of course but the whole tournament has been sullied by pointless bureaucracy and overshadowed by a lack of faith in those at the very highest echelons of world football.

And that's without even mentioning the rioting that takes place every day and night in a part of the world where the government gives nothing to their most at-risk citizens. Pathetic.