Gaming to Blame for England's Football Failures?

Think we would have the best team if we could go into every household and throw away every PlayStation, Xbox and video game,” said West Ham goal keeper Rob Green (pictured) following England’s failure to qualify for next summer’s European Championship finals.

"Other countries seem to bring on world class players, countries like Brazil and Argentina where, often, it's football or nothing. In contrast, we live in a country where we have choices, and perhaps the will to do it and the need to escape from situations you're in are not so clear."

Green’s comments echo those of Portsmouth - and potentially England’s next - manager Harry Redknapp, who said last month that Xbox culture was having a negative effect on the state of the beautiful game.

"Now I rarely see a kickabout in the park. All I see are the dazzling lights of bedroom windows from the glare of TVs and computers. It seems football cannot compete with an Xbox."

info: CVG