What do footballers and football fans have in common with the Mona Lisa? Well I wouldn’t be asking the question if the answer wasn’t “something”, would I now?

In his book Irrational Exuberance, the Yale economist Robert Shiller explains how the inherent psychological characteristics of human beings and their application to social situations and, well, life, cause irrational stock market and housing market bubbles, with a bubble being where an asset (such as a share in a company or a house) is valued at an amount that is greater than what it is actually worth (think of the famous Tulip-mania in 17^th century Holland, those silly Dutch buggers).

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Having been a lifelong, avid book reader, primarily football autobiographies of course, the release of Sir Alex Fergusons new book “Football Bloody Hell” scheduled to hit the shelves this week already has me salivating. It’s a book that has been anxiously awaited since Fergusons “Managing My Life” a decade ago and if a preview written by Andy Mitten for the Manchester Evening News is any guide, it will be sitting on my bookshelf the minute it hits the stores.

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Mention the name of Sir Bobby Charlton anywhere in the world and what’s the first thing that comes to mind? England 1966? World Cup Winner? The odds are that it will be neither because Charlton has been the face of the global Manchester United brand for years. As much as we all want him to stay around for many more, the great man will turn 73 in October and it’s only a matter of time before he will need to be replaced by a new club icon. So who could be a better choice than Ryan Giggs, a one club legend who is likely to end his glorious career at the age of 37? It’s therefore disappointing to see speculation that Giggs could end up spending his retirement in the United States.
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The many thousands of Manchester United fans who cannot wait to see the back of  a Bulgarian they nicknamed ‘Berbaflop’ will be well advised to remember the Uruguay hitman who was dubbed Diego ‘Forlorn’ during his two and a half years at Old Trafford. Perhaps his 17 goals in a total of 98 appearances warranted his nickname at the time but Forlan has certainly proven his ability to find the net in the five years since.

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The many thousands of Manchester United fans who cannot wait to see the back of  a Bulgarian they nicknamed ‘Berbaflop’ will be well advised to remember the Uruguay hitman who was dubbed Diego ‘Forlorn’ during his two and a half years at Old Trafford. Perhaps his 17 goals in a total of 98 appearances warranted his nickname at the time but Forlan has certainly proven his ability to find the net in the five years since.

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The man often rated as the best left full back in the world Patrice Evra will be the new France captain with Thierry Henry accepting a place on the substitutes bench for the World Cup campaign. Evra captained his country for the first time in the recent 2-1 defeat of  Costa Rica in a warm up game. Former skipper Henry has been out of the side since leading France in that controversial play off win over Republic of Ireland.

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