Last Sunday, Manchester City defeated Sunderland to win the football League Cup at Wembley. Nothing surprising there, they are an excellent football team packed with star players. However, what grabbed my attention was the fact that not one player who took to the field in Manchester City’s colours that day was either English or British.

Among the substitutes were sat three Englishmen, all England internationals and their only involvement in the victory was keeping the bench warm.  Doesn’t it make you wonder how on earth our national side is going to develop and improve when our best players can’t even get a game for their own clubs?

Until we get back to the situation where clubs are compelled to limit the number of foreign players in their sides (how about a maximum of, say, five?) the problem will continue. English football will fail to develop and our national side will remain the great underachievers with their success limited to Fantasy Football and trophies won on children’s computer games.