Indecent proposals and Drogba binbags: Africa's still crazy
Tuesday 12 February 2008 10:14
It’s tricky to comment on the African Cup of Nations without descending into cliché. You just had to listen to the patronising babble spouted by pretty much every TV commentator during the tournament.
You couldn’t watch a game without being subjected to predictable talk about the stars “playing the game with a smile on their face”, teams that were “physically impressive, but tactically naïve” and laughter about "eccentric" goalkeepers, not to mention the “spectacular rhythm and colour around the ground”.
They might as well have added “the dozy African blighters” to this pseudo-racist guff and be done with it.
Nevertheless, the Africans themselves cannot be entirely acquitted on the charge of bringing some of this on themselves by being extremely silly on a routine basis. And that, Crazy World Of Football believes, is something to be celebrated.
To recap the last couple of weeks, we’ve had Yakubu taking an unscheduled holiday after Nigeria were knocked out of the tournament, leaving David Moyes bug-eyed with rage (although come to think of it, when is Moyes not bug-eyed with rage?)
Then Nottingham Forest’s Junior Agogo was offered an 82-year old fan’s granddaughter by way of a reward for helping Ghana to the semi final (he politely declined where many a Premiership roaster may have waded in.)
Following this, news arrived that leading players from the tournament were to be immortalised on “refuse sacks” by Ghanaian company Trashy Bags: Didier Drogba, Salomon Kalou and Michael Essien are among the stars now getting lobbed in the bin.
Perhaps most insanely of all, there was the moment that Ghana and Reading’s Andre Bikey completely lost his marbles and attacked a paramedic trying to assist an injured Rigobert Song.
And of course, cruel laughter could be gleaned from Song’s own "tactically naïve" (ie crap) defending that helped hand Egypt the title on a platter.
This of course sparked colourful, rhythmic celebrations. Who are we kidding? They're madder than wet hens.
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