He shouldn’t have resigned over that game. It was not a bad performance; in fact it was quite a good one for England. I would not have resigned under those circumstances.

At the World Cup and even now at the Confederations Cup, our security provisions will ensure the greatest level of protection possible for all those participating – both inside and outside the stadiums.

He has been named as the heir apparent of the great Argentine hero, Diego Maradona, by journalists, players, and Maradona himself, alike. I’d personally put him in a drawer of my bedside table.

It would make me a lot happier if I could meet up again next year with as many friends as possible from all over the world who I’ve met during my career. That’s where the great opportunity lies, for me personally, in our role as World Cup host.

As someone who played a team sport, I feel a bit uncomfortable being ranked as an individual so high.

The Olympic stadium may have been built only in the early 1970s but it was clear for a long time it had no future. For many reasons it is not good enough for modern football and today’s fans.

It’s quite possible that Beckham suffers from a mental block at big tournaments.

The trouble for today’s footballers is they have too many distractions. We used to get our old players coming to watch training with football magazines in their hands. Now, more often than not, they are checking the share prices.

The most important thing however is the money. What use would it be to us, to have a a mighty stadium but a useless team, because we couldn’t afford anything better?

Possession means nothing when the opponent takes its chances.