Football fouls and f*ck-ups

Day 17 of the World Cup and one almost feels sorry for England. At least now they know how the Irish must feel though no-one can argue with the four goals Germany put passed them.

Then what about Argentina vs Mexico? First goal definitely offside. Of course it's easy to blame the referee. We armchair critics have the benefit of technology, including instant replays to spot the gaffs.

But wait a minute? What if referees had the benefit of the same technology? After all, they have assistants running the touchlines. Supposing they also had assitants in the stands, scrutinising events on close circuit TV? Someone ought to tell FIFA about this revolutionary new idea.

And while we're waiting for that lot to come to terms with the obvious, please feast yourself on this selection of bad refereeing decisions from World Cup 2010.