/ 7 December 2006

Goal blunder boosts diplomatic ties

A Christmas gift inspired by England goalkeeper Paul Robinson’s horror own goal against Croatia has helped to boost diplomatic ties between London and Zagreb, it was reported on Thursday.

The British embassy in Zagreb has printed photographs of the infamous incident, which occurred during a Euro 2008 qualifier two months ago, on the back of an official invitation for its Christmas party.

”We have decided to remind you of the early Christmas gift from Paul Robinson to Croatia, since we believe that was the key moment in relations between the two countries in 2006,” the daily Vecernji List quoted British ambassador to Croatia John Ramsden as saying.

Robinson made the dreadful error on October 11 when he completely missed an attempted clearance kick of a back pass from defender Gary Neville, and watched in shock as the ball rolled into the back of the net.

The ”air” shot, which helped Croatia to a 2-0 home victory, was strongly lambasted in the British press at the time.

The result left England in a four-way scrap for two spots of Euro 2008 qualifying Group E, which also includes Andorra, Estonia, Israel, Macedonia and Russia. — Sapa-AFP