Just call him Ché Neville
Four more years.
We can’t stand four more minutes.
Sepp Blatter is still in control of FIFA tonight after he trounced Prince Ali in the Presidential elections in Zurich.
Despite the arrests of several officials for corruption on Wednesday, the head of football’s governing body is set for another term in the hot seat.
Or maybe not if Gary Neville has anything to do with it.
The former Manchester United man feels that if the head of football is to be deposed then there is only two men whom he could trust to get the job done.
Writing in his Telegraph colmun the TV pundit feels that the onus on cleaning up the game now rests with the players,
‘The quickest and best way to bring Blatter down is to take players away from him. You will struggle to take the African or Asian votes away from him, but players can become a unified force.’
‘Just think of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, the two biggest stars in the game right now, and consider a World Cup without those two.’
‘The tournament would not exist if Ronaldo and Messi turned their backs on the World Cup because of the way Fifa is running the game. This would impact sponsors and broadcasters and in turn bring this whole debacle of an organisation to a standstill.’
Neville argues that any attempt to try and overthrow Blatter has failed because there has never been a unified front against him.
The England coach is hopeful that if Messi and Ronaldo came together, that other pro footballers,through FIFpro,the players’ body,would row in behind and usher in a new era for FIFA,
‘But it is not down to individual players to lead the way by becoming a lone wolf in this.’
‘It is about the organisations that have been set up by the players to deal with this because former players such as David Ginola and Luis Figo have tried to take on Blatter, but they have been unable to make any in-roads.’
‘But this is different. It is about smart thinking and players uniting through FIFpro to rid the game of the stain that is currently damaging it.’
‘Maybe the only way to get rid of him is if players get together and vote not to play in his tournaments.’
Neville’s disdain for Blatter is clear as he recounts meeting the FIFA President for the only time in his life in 2013 at an FA dinner in England.
He lashes the incumbent as someone who is clearly out-of-touch with what the football community thinks of him,
‘When Blatter began to speak, he did ok for the first two or three minutes, saying a few complimentary things to his audience, but the speech then descended into something that just became a hideous experience.’
‘He went on for 25-30 minutes and, just when you thought he had finished, he started up again. It reminded me of one of those candles on a child’s birthday cake which you think has been blown out, only for the flame to flicker back into life.’
‘When he spoke about issues such as sexism and racism in football, it just did not sit comfortably. It was a bizarre half-hour from a man, who appeared out of touch and someone who had run his race.’
Neville is also unconvinced as to others who may be in a position to replace Blatter. The former defender is especially doubtful of the intentions of Michel Platini
‘As for Uefa and Michel Platini coming out and calling for Blatter to stand down, it is a worrying sign if we have to hang our hat on Platini! With France voting for Blatter, Platini can’t even control his own federation, never mind Uefa.’
