If there is one thing that truly sucks about being a football fan it is those long summer months from mid May to mid August when day after day you look up the fan websites, blogs and papers looking for any scrap of football news.  The transfer speculation is the worst form of “journalism” I have ever known.  This player might possibly go here but probably won’t but then might go over there and so on and so on.  You tell yourself you won’t read it this summer, you tell yourself that after years of it you know it’s just greedy football agents wanting to move players around for a cut.  You remind yourself that it’s meaningless till you see the guy standing there holding the jersey with his name on it, but heaven help you year after year, summer after summer, you endure.

However, every other summer there is a saving grace, something to keep at least some of your focus off the papers.  Either the European Cup is on or the World Cup.  Thank the heavens, instead of worrying your favourite player will leave only to be replaced by a 12 year old with “potential”, you get to worry about your favourite player being injured playing for his country, only to be sent back to your club to be taken care of.  As well as that there is some wonderful football to feast your eyes on

Let’s be honest here people, the group stage is kind of rubbish.  So far the pick of the bunch has been Germany v Australia where we had a crazy red card for Tim Cahill and a few wonderful goals (I knew I should have bet on Klose for the golden boot, why oh why did I go for Van Persie, damn loyalty).  It was a good match but it wasn’t great was it?  We will have to wait for the last 16 or even the quarter finals before we get to see great.  However, that is what is so amazing about this competition, you know you will see great.

Even I am too young to remember Pele, I have seen him on video but I do remember Maradona playing in Mexico in 1986.  I was 10 years old and this little man from Argentina took the ball and ran and swerved and nutmegged and I saw for the first time that Pele was right, it really is the beautiful game, it really can be majestic and full of artistry and skill.

Who knows if anyone will ever light up a tournament like that again but they all dream of it, Messi, Rooney, Ronaldo, they all share that dream and they share it with all the kids who go to bed every night and dream of wearing their country’s jersey and scoring a goal that everyone remembers where they were and who they were with when it was scored.

The World Cup is a feast of football, you get to see players you don’t normally get to see and you get to see players play not for crazy amounts of money but for the love of the game.  Heroes are made, players like Packie Bonner may not be internationally renowned sportsmen but we all remember that penalty save and he will always be a legend in his home country as will Jeff Hurst and so many more.

Lets hope that this year we get to see more memories created, more moments of wonder and a deserving captain enter the list of those lucky enough to lift the most famous sporting trophy of them all.

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