England are the fourth best international football team in Europe ahead of Euro 2012, according to FIFA's latest world rankings. Which shows exactly how much faith one should put in such nonsense. Roy Hodgson's side has moved up one place, from seventh to sixth, after successive 1-0 friendly victories over Norway and Belgium. Spain have retained top spot, while Germany and the Netherlands are third and fourth respectively. 
Uruguay are second, while Portugal have dropped five places to tenth. Croatia and Denmark are the other two European sides who occupy the top ten, while Italy (twelfth), Russia (thirteenth) and France (fourteenth) sit outside. The Republic of Ireland, who open their Euro 2012 campaign against Croatia on Sunday, are eighteenth in the world. Poland, despite moving up three places, are the lowest-ranked team in Euro 2012 in sixty second, while fellow host nation Ukraine are fifty second. Uruguay's position is an all-time high for the South Americans, while fifth-placed Brazil and seventh-placed Argentina make up the rest of the top ten. The FIFA world rankings are compiled every month, with ranking points accumulated according to results, the importance of the matches played and the strength of opposing teams. And are, frankly, a load of old toot.
Ukraine's manager claims that an act of 'sabotage' may have caused the outbreak of food poisoning affecting ten members of his Euro 2012 squad. The players suffered the illness prior to the friendly against Turkey in Germany, which they lost 2-0. 'It happened in Germany, but it is impossible to establish the causes - all ate different food,' Oleg Blokhin told Ukraine television. 'It may have been sabotage, I do not know. It cannot be accidental.' Striker Andriy Shevchenko and midfielder Anatoliy Tymoshchuk are two of the players affected.
However, Ukraine were hopeful that the players would be fully fit in time for their first group match on Monday. 'They were out running this morning, so we would expect that they will all be fine for the opening game against Sweden,' said a team spokesman. Dynamo Kiev midfielder Denys Garmash was the worst affected, but was keen to prove himself after being omitted from his country's previous two games. 'He was in the roughest condition,' said team doctor Leonid Myronov. 'He was vomiting violently and we had to try to clean his stomach using all available methods of detox. He was extremely eager to play and said before the game he felt okay.' The initial problem was reported by the team masseur but it was not long until several of the co-host nation's leading players complained of similar symptoms. 'He could barely finish his work with the team,' added Myronov. 'At 4am Denys Garmash came to me with the same trouble. A bit later Taras Mykhalyk, Andriy Voronin, Artem Milevsky, Andriy Shevchenko and Anatoliy Tymoshchuk all complained of feeling indisposed.'
Oily UEFA president Michel Platini says that any players who walk off the pitch at Euro 2012 due to receiving racial abuse from the terraces will be booked. A BBC Panorama programme highlighted racism incidents at grounds in Poland and Ukraine, who co-host Euro 2012. Manchester City and Italy striker Mario Balotelli threatened to walk off the pitch if he believed he was a victim. But Platini said: 'It's a yellow card. It's not a player - Mr Balotelli - who's in charge of refereeing.' Platini insists that officials will deal with any incidents. He added: 'It's the referee who takes these decisions. Referees can finish the game. They have this power in case of racism,' Platini told the BBC's David Bond. 'That is, I think, the best way to protect the game against racism. The referee has been given advice and he can stop the game if there are problems.' Platini dismissed suggestions that his reputation would be tarnished if there was racial abuse at Euro 2012. 'My reputation because there are racists in Poland and Ukraine - are you joking? You think I am responsible for the racists in the rest of Europe or in England or in France?' he said. 'My responsibility is not to do nothing - and we have done a lot to change the rules, to change the regulations, to help You're Fair and Never Again.
We help them, we do a lot for racism - but I am not responsible for society. The society is not so easy. You have some problems and we have to organise these Euros from the beginning with some problems because these two countries never welcome so big an event in the past. It was a big challenge for Poland, big challenge for Ukraine, a big challenge for UEFA - and we have done our best.' Asked about the footage shown in Panorama's documentary, he said: 'We are shocked about racists but we are trying to do something; we have to fight against that. I feel bad. Of course I feel bad because I am not a racist.' The fifty six-year-old also insisted the issue of racism is one that extends far beyond the two host nations of Euro 2012. Platini, who has been UEFA president since January 2007, said: 'If you want to have a programme on racism you can go everywhere now because there is an increase in the nationalists in many, many countries. It is not just a fact only in Poland and Ukraine. You can go in France, United States, in England and you will find the problem of racism. You have more nationalists in many, many countries in east of Europe - that is true.' The UEFA president has previously criticised the host nations, describing Ukrainian hoteliers as 'bandits' for the rising cost of accommodation and bemoaning the quality of pitches in Poland. The Ukrainian president, Viktor Yanukovych, has downplayed fears over racist attacks in Ukraine, saying hooligans were known to the authorities and security services 'will be watching all the matches closely.'
And, in another classic case of 'shoot the messenger' the BBC has been accused of 'sensationalism' over claims in the Panorama documentary that racism and antisemitism are rampant in Ukraine and Poland. Hang on, didn't we have all this in 2010 when the Panorama claimed that FIFA was full of crooks? And, sorry, remind me, wasn't that subsequently proved to be true? The documentary, Euro 2012: Stadiums of Hate, was screened last week. It included footage of Polish fans chanting antisemitic slogans and giving Nazi salutes, and showed a group of Asian supporters being beaten and punched at an end-of-season league match in Ukraine. The graphic footage prompted the former England defender Sol Campbell to urge England fans to stay away from Euro 2012 and 'watch it on TV' instead. He added: 'Don't even risk [going] because you could end up coming back in a coffin.' On Wednesday, however, Jonathan Ornstein, the executive director of the Jewish community centre in Krakow, accused the BBC of selective reporting. He said he was 'furious' at the way Panorama had 'exploited me as a source' and claimed it had 'used me and others to manipulate the serious subject of antisemitism for its own sensationalist agenda.' In an angry statement to the Economist magazine, Ornstein said Panorama's reporter Chris Rogers had interviewed him for more than an hour. Ornstein said he told Rogers that the small number of racist and antisemitic fans in Poland 'do not represent Polish society as a whole' and urged him to interview two Israeli footballers who played for Wisla Kraków. 'The reporters responded that this line of inquiry "didn't fit their story," a response which perplexed me at the time.' Ornstein complained further that the programme was 'tendentious.' It 'completely disregarded anything positive I said and aired only comments critical of Poland,' he wrote. The BBC flatly rejected Ornstein's comments. The corporation said that it had made clear the interview was being carried out in the context of football-related racism and antisemitism in Poland.
It denied refusing the offer to interview the Israeli players because it 'did not fit the story.' But England fan groups also dubbed the controversial documentary 'unhelpful' and said that it had given the misleading impression racism in Ukraine was rife. Mark Perryman, the 'convenor' of the London England fans' group, said racism in Ukraine undoubtedly existed but was 'very specific' and took place at an 'inter-club' rather than at a national level, with a far-right fan culture similar to that of southern Europe. Perryman also noted that there had been no cases of racism or hooliganism when England last played in Ukraine in 2009, or during recent visits there by Premier League teams including The Arse, Stottingtot Hotshots, Sheikh Yer Man City and Everton. Yuri Bender, a journalist who follows Ukrainian football closely, described the footage of violence in the Metalist stadium in Kharkiv as 'pretty shocking.' But, he claimed the club, FC Metalist Kharkiv, had told him the fans involved were subsequently arrested and banned – a fact Panorama did not mention. The club also said that Panorama had watched another league match in Kharkiv where nothing happened, with this omitted from the film. Speaking earlier, Bender said fears of racism in Ukraine had been exaggerated. He told the Gruniad Morning Star: 'My wife, who is of Afro-Caribbean origin, and our two mixed-race children have accompanied me to Ukraine on several occasions, to Lviv in the west, Kiev in the centre and the Donbass region in the east, of which Donetsk is the capital. There has certainly been no abuse directed against them and in fact quite the opposite.' The BBC responded that it had followed up after the attack with the Ukrainian FA and the police, and had simply been told three weeks later they were investigating. It added: 'We filmed two games at the stadium and featured both in the programme. The second game was when the attack took place. At the first game we filmed several thousand people appearing to give a Nazi salute. This was shown in the programme. We also interviewed the local police chief who claimed that this was actually the fans pointing at the opposing fans.' But, let's be brutally honest about this, nothing excuses the disgusting words and actions shown in the BBC programme or, frankly, the denials and passive-aggressive blame-shifting from the host countries. 'There's racism other places, too!' is one of the cheapest and lamest excuses there is.
Uruguay are second, while Portugal have dropped five places to tenth. Croatia and Denmark are the other two European sides who occupy the top ten, while Italy (twelfth), Russia (thirteenth) and France (fourteenth) sit outside. The Republic of Ireland, who open their Euro 2012 campaign against Croatia on Sunday, are eighteenth in the world. Poland, despite moving up three places, are the lowest-ranked team in Euro 2012 in sixty second, while fellow host nation Ukraine are fifty second. Uruguay's position is an all-time high for the South Americans, while fifth-placed Brazil and seventh-placed Argentina make up the rest of the top ten. The FIFA world rankings are compiled every month, with ranking points accumulated according to results, the importance of the matches played and the strength of opposing teams. And are, frankly, a load of old toot.Ukraine's manager claims that an act of 'sabotage' may have caused the outbreak of food poisoning affecting ten members of his Euro 2012 squad. The players suffered the illness prior to the friendly against Turkey in Germany, which they lost 2-0. 'It happened in Germany, but it is impossible to establish the causes - all ate different food,' Oleg Blokhin told Ukraine television. 'It may have been sabotage, I do not know. It cannot be accidental.' Striker Andriy Shevchenko and midfielder Anatoliy Tymoshchuk are two of the players affected.
However, Ukraine were hopeful that the players would be fully fit in time for their first group match on Monday. 'They were out running this morning, so we would expect that they will all be fine for the opening game against Sweden,' said a team spokesman. Dynamo Kiev midfielder Denys Garmash was the worst affected, but was keen to prove himself after being omitted from his country's previous two games. 'He was in the roughest condition,' said team doctor Leonid Myronov. 'He was vomiting violently and we had to try to clean his stomach using all available methods of detox. He was extremely eager to play and said before the game he felt okay.' The initial problem was reported by the team masseur but it was not long until several of the co-host nation's leading players complained of similar symptoms. 'He could barely finish his work with the team,' added Myronov. 'At 4am Denys Garmash came to me with the same trouble. A bit later Taras Mykhalyk, Andriy Voronin, Artem Milevsky, Andriy Shevchenko and Anatoliy Tymoshchuk all complained of feeling indisposed.'Oily UEFA president Michel Platini says that any players who walk off the pitch at Euro 2012 due to receiving racial abuse from the terraces will be booked. A BBC Panorama programme highlighted racism incidents at grounds in Poland and Ukraine, who co-host Euro 2012. Manchester City and Italy striker Mario Balotelli threatened to walk off the pitch if he believed he was a victim. But Platini said: 'It's a yellow card. It's not a player - Mr Balotelli - who's in charge of refereeing.' Platini insists that officials will deal with any incidents. He added: 'It's the referee who takes these decisions. Referees can finish the game. They have this power in case of racism,' Platini told the BBC's David Bond. 'That is, I think, the best way to protect the game against racism. The referee has been given advice and he can stop the game if there are problems.' Platini dismissed suggestions that his reputation would be tarnished if there was racial abuse at Euro 2012. 'My reputation because there are racists in Poland and Ukraine - are you joking? You think I am responsible for the racists in the rest of Europe or in England or in France?' he said. 'My responsibility is not to do nothing - and we have done a lot to change the rules, to change the regulations, to help You're Fair and Never Again.
We help them, we do a lot for racism - but I am not responsible for society. The society is not so easy. You have some problems and we have to organise these Euros from the beginning with some problems because these two countries never welcome so big an event in the past. It was a big challenge for Poland, big challenge for Ukraine, a big challenge for UEFA - and we have done our best.' Asked about the footage shown in Panorama's documentary, he said: 'We are shocked about racists but we are trying to do something; we have to fight against that. I feel bad. Of course I feel bad because I am not a racist.' The fifty six-year-old also insisted the issue of racism is one that extends far beyond the two host nations of Euro 2012. Platini, who has been UEFA president since January 2007, said: 'If you want to have a programme on racism you can go everywhere now because there is an increase in the nationalists in many, many countries. It is not just a fact only in Poland and Ukraine. You can go in France, United States, in England and you will find the problem of racism. You have more nationalists in many, many countries in east of Europe - that is true.' The UEFA president has previously criticised the host nations, describing Ukrainian hoteliers as 'bandits' for the rising cost of accommodation and bemoaning the quality of pitches in Poland. The Ukrainian president, Viktor Yanukovych, has downplayed fears over racist attacks in Ukraine, saying hooligans were known to the authorities and security services 'will be watching all the matches closely.'
And, in another classic case of 'shoot the messenger' the BBC has been accused of 'sensationalism' over claims in the Panorama documentary that racism and antisemitism are rampant in Ukraine and Poland. Hang on, didn't we have all this in 2010 when the Panorama claimed that FIFA was full of crooks? And, sorry, remind me, wasn't that subsequently proved to be true? The documentary, Euro 2012: Stadiums of Hate, was screened last week. It included footage of Polish fans chanting antisemitic slogans and giving Nazi salutes, and showed a group of Asian supporters being beaten and punched at an end-of-season league match in Ukraine. The graphic footage prompted the former England defender Sol Campbell to urge England fans to stay away from Euro 2012 and 'watch it on TV' instead. He added: 'Don't even risk [going] because you could end up coming back in a coffin.' On Wednesday, however, Jonathan Ornstein, the executive director of the Jewish community centre in Krakow, accused the BBC of selective reporting. He said he was 'furious' at the way Panorama had 'exploited me as a source' and claimed it had 'used me and others to manipulate the serious subject of antisemitism for its own sensationalist agenda.' In an angry statement to the Economist magazine, Ornstein said Panorama's reporter Chris Rogers had interviewed him for more than an hour. Ornstein said he told Rogers that the small number of racist and antisemitic fans in Poland 'do not represent Polish society as a whole' and urged him to interview two Israeli footballers who played for Wisla Kraków. 'The reporters responded that this line of inquiry "didn't fit their story," a response which perplexed me at the time.' Ornstein complained further that the programme was 'tendentious.' It 'completely disregarded anything positive I said and aired only comments critical of Poland,' he wrote. The BBC flatly rejected Ornstein's comments. The corporation said that it had made clear the interview was being carried out in the context of football-related racism and antisemitism in Poland.
It denied refusing the offer to interview the Israeli players because it 'did not fit the story.' But England fan groups also dubbed the controversial documentary 'unhelpful' and said that it had given the misleading impression racism in Ukraine was rife. Mark Perryman, the 'convenor' of the London England fans' group, said racism in Ukraine undoubtedly existed but was 'very specific' and took place at an 'inter-club' rather than at a national level, with a far-right fan culture similar to that of southern Europe. Perryman also noted that there had been no cases of racism or hooliganism when England last played in Ukraine in 2009, or during recent visits there by Premier League teams including The Arse, Stottingtot Hotshots, Sheikh Yer Man City and Everton. Yuri Bender, a journalist who follows Ukrainian football closely, described the footage of violence in the Metalist stadium in Kharkiv as 'pretty shocking.' But, he claimed the club, FC Metalist Kharkiv, had told him the fans involved were subsequently arrested and banned – a fact Panorama did not mention. The club also said that Panorama had watched another league match in Kharkiv where nothing happened, with this omitted from the film. Speaking earlier, Bender said fears of racism in Ukraine had been exaggerated. He told the Gruniad Morning Star: 'My wife, who is of Afro-Caribbean origin, and our two mixed-race children have accompanied me to Ukraine on several occasions, to Lviv in the west, Kiev in the centre and the Donbass region in the east, of which Donetsk is the capital. There has certainly been no abuse directed against them and in fact quite the opposite.' The BBC responded that it had followed up after the attack with the Ukrainian FA and the police, and had simply been told three weeks later they were investigating. It added: 'We filmed two games at the stadium and featured both in the programme. The second game was when the attack took place. At the first game we filmed several thousand people appearing to give a Nazi salute. This was shown in the programme. We also interviewed the local police chief who claimed that this was actually the fans pointing at the opposing fans.' But, let's be brutally honest about this, nothing excuses the disgusting words and actions shown in the BBC programme or, frankly, the denials and passive-aggressive blame-shifting from the host countries. 'There's racism other places, too!' is one of the cheapest and lamest excuses there is.
