\n<\/p>\n
If there\u2019s ever a good time to be out of work, it\u2019s probably now.<\/p>\n
With the Euros, the Olympics and Wimbledon all locked and loaded, rather than networking, putting out feelers and seeking new employment I can sit on my arse and watch sport until the cows come home. I\u2019ve not relayed my plan to my wife yet, but I feel fully confident she will agree.<\/p>\n
It is but a minor hurdle that I know very little about any of the teams or their players unless they play for Arsenal or are big names in the Premier League. In fact that makes it better, I think. My ignorance and lack of curiosity lend a certain exoticism to the whole thing that more earnest students of world football might not possess.<\/p>\n
(I digress, but I remember my mum and dad had a book on the shelf in the loo when I was young called something like \u2018What men know about women\u2019 and there was not a word of print on any of the 250 pages. I feel this way a bit about Euro 2024.)<\/p>\n
And there\u2019s nothing better than the early stages of a big football tournament when there are three games a day on the telly. Especially when you don\u2019t need to pretend you\u2019re working. It doesn\u2019t matter what they are, not one bit. If it\u2019s on at 2, I\u2019m in at 2. That\u2019s my new mantra.<\/p>\n
Everyone says England have a great chance, and maybe they do, but I\u2019m not falling for that – it sounds disturbingly like optimism. Lord no. Disappointment is England\u2019s middle name, and underachievement its sobriquet. I will approach with caution.<\/p>\n