Cesc’s short BBC stint

WHEN BBC trumpeted that Cesc Fabregas would be joining their World Cup line-up of pundits on June 11, there was no mention that he would be only staying for a week — with the Chelsea midfielder having already left Russia.

New Derby manager Frank Lampard is also expected to go home after England play Panama, with demanding Derby owner Mel Morris not likely to be keen on him staying any longer.

Another BBC pundit, Phil Neville, has made it clear after consultation with the FA that he would prefer not to talk about England due to his FA position as the England women’s manager.

To complete the upheaval, BBC Radio 5 Live’s England pitchside reporter Caroline Barker has had to return home with an ear infection

THE

FA’s U-turn about inviting the FA board to attend the World Cup knockout stage, after saying none of them would be going to Russia, is down to government tensions having eased and the realisation that nothing the English football ruling body do is going to influence Vladimir Putin’s game plan one way or the other.

NIKE, who surprisingly extended their England kit deal after recent woeful tournament showings, have had an early replica-shirt bonus in Russia, with England wearing white kit against Panama tomorrow after playing in red against Tunisia.

THE

darts phenomenon in Repino, which started as a good-humoured response by the FA after Joe Hart was not prepared to talk about the in-house competition at Euro 2016, has reached the stage of other England players cheering on their representative at the daily three-shot challenge surrounded by photographers and TV cameras.