WOW! Hollywood would never buy those two match outcomes

WE WILL surely wait a long time, before we see two such high-quality and exciting games, back to back, as the Champions League semi-finals which had us glued to our television screens on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.

Lucas Moura, Wednesday night's hat-trick hero

If the Miracle of Anfield was stretching the bounds of credibility, those final few seconds in the Cruyff Arena took us into the bounds of Saturday morning film matinees, as: “with one bound,” Spurs were free and heading for Madrid. Fleet Street, of course, treated these triumphs with their usual nonchalant understatement, as, once again England rules the football universe – with surely, victories to come tonight for Arsenal and Chelsea and a total English takeover of the major European finals – or is the curse of the commenter about to strike again?

Well, my advice to my English friends is, enjoy the moment, because I do not think there will be many more. The insanity of Brexit will not by-pass the Premiership and, I fear, for England's sake, that hubris is coming down the track to meet them faster than a speeding train.

You see, once England exits the EU, I still fancy, we Scots will manage to have our democratic wishes satisfied and we can stay in, everything will change – particularly given actually getting into England to work, even as a footballer, will become an awful lot more-difficult after Brexit and with the new harsher immigration criteria which the Toerags will introduce.

Liverpool and Tottenham are managed respectively by a German and an Argentinian. At the moment Messrs Klopp and Pochettino get into the UK under Freedom of Movement - Pochetinno because he was working inside the EU. Post-Brexit, we are into the realm of work permits and: “is there a suitably-qualified English manager who could do the job?”

The two clubs each listed an 18-man squad for their semi-finals; combined, these 36 players came from 16 different nations:

• 12 Englishmen
• 4 Belgians
• 3 Brazilians
• 3 Argentinians
• 2 Frenchmen
• 2 Dutchmen
• 1 each from Scotland, Wales, Cameroon, Croatia, Denmark, Kenya, Senegal, South Korea, Spain and Switzerland

Now, given that one of the major planks of both the pro-Brexit blue and red Toerags is: “Taking back control,” particularly of their borders and immigration, they are hardly going to allow crops to rot in the fields, because they will not admit the foreign labour needed to harvest said crops, while allowing the local football club to stuff its playing roster with overseas players.

Also, if the English economy tanks as everyone bar the deluded in government and opposition can see it will, the big clubs will not be able to sustain their current spend, spend, spend – on foreign players – management model.

So, my advice to my English friends is: enjoy this latest triumph for Mother Engurland, football may be coming home, but, it will not stay there long.

I WAS intending to publish my thoughts on what could be done with the remaining current “Senior” clubs, were the SFA and the SPFL ever to implement my notion of a top-class game, fit for purpose, but that must wait.

Willie Collum, one of the few people in Scotland who understands VAR

Because I see Willie Collum has come out in favour of the implementation of VAR in Scottish football. I should mention, this was Willie speaking as the elite level referee, considered one of the best in Europe, who has been trained in the use of VAR, rather than the gaffe and accident-prone Willie Collum who gets slated on a weekly basis in Scotland.

Willie is actually a very good referee – at least when outside Scotland. I have always rated him, in spite of his occasional brain farts. The man speaks sense.

Of course, it's not all about money – if the clubs can pay to bring in some of the non-Scottish diddy players they have been hiring of late, they can afford VAR, it's that simple. However, you have to ask yourself, how many “honest mistakes,” usually involving a couple of Glasgow-based clubs, might VAR prevent?

After a couple of months of VAR referrals, we might find Old Firm players able to stay on their feet in the opposition penalty areas, those of us who support other clubs live in hope.

Willie reckons its implementation might lead to a squeeze on referee numbers, with some of the present top domestic guys being taken out of the front line to operate the VAR system. I don't see that as a huge problem. Referees now have to retire younger, because the game is getting faster, so, put the older guys into the VAR teams – this lets young blood be given their chance sooner.

And, the SFA really should, as the SRU has done with one or two of their players, fast-track former players up the referee rankings. All it takes is a wee bit of common sense. OK, I accept, that is something in short supply along that sixth-floor corridor at Hampden.

SPEAKING OF a lack of common sense inside Hampden, it seems to be common across Scottish football. I base this observation on reading a story in this morning's Hootsmon, which speaks about the £6 million which Scottish clubs spent on agent's fees in the past however long.

Now, if a desperate club manager, Director of Football or even Chairman calls up and agent and pleads: “Get me a half-decent centre-half, quickly,” well the agent has every right to charge a “finder's fee” or whatever – I have no problem with that.

However, the break down of the figures shows that the £6 million total was split roughly 50/50 between club agents' fees, accrued in circumstances such as that outlined in the last paragraph, and player's agents' fees – whereby the club is paying fees to the agent of the player they are signing.

Come on, that agent, if he is doing his job properly for his client, the player, should be screwing as good a deal out of the club as he can – yet the club is, as well as taking-on the player, paying him, probably if he is from outside Scotland putting together and paying for a resettlement package, is expected to pay commission to the player's agent.

That needlessly spent £6 million would go a long way towards paying for VAR, methinks. In reality, as I see it, paying the agent who represents the player you are trying to sign is bribery, or, to those who have spent time in the Middle East, paying baksheesh. And they agree to this – madness, sheer madness.