Starting In May On EPL Talk: World Cup Legends

Last year, I was lucky enough to do a fabulous series on English football legends, which saw me delve back through history to cover 11 players that perhaps never get the credit they deserve. Football is such a fickle sport that these days, people forget just how many great players passed through the annals before we became used to such wall to wall coverage as we have today.

It was a pleasure to write about such legends as Steve Bloomer, Dixie Dean et al and next month I’ll be tackling 80 years of World Cup history to whet your appetites as the greatest show in football hits South Africa. Not only is it monumental that the World Cup is coming to the African continent for the first time, but the quality of players on show could be up there with some of the greatest tournaments we’ve seen. Add to that wall to wall HD coverage for the first time as well as the highly unusual decision to screen some games in 3-D and we could be in for a treat.

The World Cup is just something special for me, I just immerse myself in it, taking in everything, every game, every supplement. I have to digest as much information as I can to sate my appetite for the tournament. The first World Cup final I watched was 1978 when Argentina beat the Netherlands and by 1982, I was hooked. The gap between tournaments seemed to last forever and I remember 1994 so sorely as England had, quite rightly failed to qualify.

I been priviledged to see some off the worlds greatest players and some of the best matches in my life in the World Cup but I’m going to be looking at players who have perhaps been left behind as football marches ever onward. I’m choosing ten players from 1930 that have slipped through the cracks and try and bring you up to date with them. Some of them should never be forgotten, so I hope you find the series as informative and interesting as the England Legend series.

For a lot of people, it could be the first time they get to experience the World Cup in all its glory. As football continues to grow in popularity around the world, especially in America, I hope you find something to entertain you and also make you look more of a connoisseur of the beautiful game. The fact that this could be the most open World Cup since 1982 adds even more spice to the pot and with some great group games coming up, it promises to be one of the more memorable tournaments.

Of course, I’ll be rooting for England, but don’t mistake my patriotism for blinkered xenophobia. I love football from all continents and I cannot wait to see how Argentina’s disaster can be transformed, how Spain can try for the international double and if Italy can successfully defend their title. All in all, I want a great tournament full of great football and hopefully the new series will get you all in the mood for it when it kicks off on June 11th