INFLUENTIAL FIFA member Jack Warner (pictured), who could hold the key to England’s bid to host the 2018 World Cup, has repeated his attack on English football’s negative view about football in the Caribbean.
The Football Association sent England to Warner’s native Trinidad for a friendly in June as a goodwill gesture and also to try to secure his support for their World Cup.
But much of the goodwork appears to have been undone by a row that Warner, a member of FIFA’s ruling Executive Committee, had earlier this season with Sunderland manager Roy Keane.
Warner accused Keane of pulling Yorke out of a match with the United States unfairly, sparking an angry reaction from the former Manchester United captain, who labelled the FIFA vice-president “a clown and a disgrace”.
Warner’s Confederation Of North Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) hold three of the 24 votes on offer and could be seen as crucial, particularly if FIFA decide to award the tournament to a European country.
In an interview published in today’s edition of The Voice, Warner said: ”This region does not get much respect.
“‘English clubs do not respect us when we ask for our own players.
“They consider us to be irritants at best.
”I had a run-in with the guy from Sunderland and I did not want to go down to his level.
“But it showed me the sort of views that they have about us.”
To read the full article visit http://www.voice-online.co.uk/content.php?show=14690.