Anyone who's been looking to Alan Shearer or Mark Lawrenson for gambling advice will already be considerably out of pocket
Since when has it been the BBC's job to destroy our illusions? Take the case of the self-confessed mug punter who backed England to win the Euros at 16-1, sees them now backed in to 10-1, and is thus labouring under the delusion that he has what the betting community calls without a hint of irony "a value bet". What right does Alan Shearer have to tell me … er, him … that his bet is worthless?
But that is what the oracle of Newcastle took it upon himself to do after the England‑Sweden match during what the BBC – also without a hint of irony – calls "analysis". Lest there is any doubt, by the way, the word analysis appears on the screen in big letters.
Anyway, the presenter Gary Lineker asked: "Is it conceivable that England might go on and win it?"
"No," replies Shearer baldly (no pun intended. Oh, go on then, pun intended). "I don't think we're good enough." Lee Dixon chips in with the sensible observation that we do seem some way off the very best teams at the Euros, only for know-it-all last‑word freak Alan Hansen to add, in his default setting of Eeyorish finality: "A long, long way off".
Our entirely hypothetical betting man was frankly stunned by this brutal dismissal of England's chances, as was Lineker, although sadly not too stunned to deliver a joke so weak that medical staff working through the weekend at Salford Royal were unable to revive it. "When Olof scores two against you, you think you're having o laff," (geddit?) was his Wildean sign-off, which might have benefited from the word "Joke" in big letters appearing on our screens. After Poland's exit on Saturday night, Gary had another gem about "murder on the Gdansk floor", confirming once more that Tim Vine's job is in no immediate danger.
Still, Lineker's shy grin, on delivery of his supposed bon mots, is preferable to Matt Smith's furrowed brow on ITV, and what I suspect is intended to be a look of ironic detachment. Not that I have a particular problem with bad jokes, as Screen break regulars will know. What I find far more irritating is the breathtaking, bare-faced, shamelessness of the pundits.
These people, remember, have been wrong about almost everything. Do you recall them saying Russia were dark horses for the trophy, that the Czech Republic were a poor team that had no prospect of further progress, that Denmark had no chance against Holland? Well, as a non-expert, I have managed to make a small profit through the simple expedient of backing against everything the pundits say, having supported Denmark at 11-2 to beat Holland, and Greece to beat Russia at 5-1, to name just two no-hope bets.
Yet these expert analysts, who have been WRONG ABOUT ALMOST EVERYTHING, have the temerity to appear on my screen telling me with absolute certainty how it is going to be.
In the commentary box for England‑Sweden, for instance, you could hear the exasperation in Mark Lawrenson's voice when Theo Walcott was introduced. "We might have a new manager but it is still the same old, same old England, I'm afraid," he lamented. "I mean, how long has Walcott been in the squad? Six years?"
"A game in Croatia was his high spot," said the commentator, Guy Mowbray.
"He's lived off it," said Lawro.
With this kind of wrong-headedness routinely tolerated – although it's possible Lawro just gets the gig for his hilarious one-liners – I don't think it is for the BBC to disabuse those of us clinging to the quaint notion that England might win the Euros.
ITV's Gordon Strachan came up with a reason why the nation's incurable optimists might just get paid out. "There's more to football than tactics and skill," he said. "Spirit can get you to a lot of places." He was encouraged by the esprit de corps in the England squad. "You can see it when players are substituted," he said, pointing out that there seems to be good-natured acceptance rather than annoyance as players leave the field, with a handshake and good luck wishes for the replacement.
He feels this is because England have one of the younger squads, including a number of players who graduated to international football together, rather than the celebrity-studded groups who had gone to previous tournaments.
As it happens, a documentary about the great American athlete Jesse Owens on PBS the other week tended to confirm Strachan's view, documenting Owens's brief fall from grace when he flirted with Californian high society, and was subsequently beaten in three races by Eulace Peacock. "Celebrity and sporting ability is a very hard mix to get right," said the commentary.
It is, of course, entirely possible that England will not win the Euros, and I have enough humility to accept that the views of Hansen, who after all has played more international football than me, may have more validity than mine. And while I am on disclaimers, I ought also to point out that if you are following my betting strategy, then the value of investments can go down as well as up. Read More
انسخ الكود التالى و ضعه فى موقعك او مدونتك.
