The retirement of Paul Scholes from international football is one of those shocks that quickly makes sense. The image flashes to mind of an exhausted midfielder tottering off after only 57 minutes of his final appearance for England, the defeat to Portugal in Euro 2004.

With second sight having failed most pundits we have been left with a Euro 2004 tournament of second thoughts. The composition of the semifinals was unexpected and the names of the key figures come as almost as great a surprise. For example, no one had imagined Helder Postiga slaying England.

You can judge the rise of a man’s reputation by the prestige of the rumours attached to him. Only a few months ago Jose Mourinho was being touted as the new Tottenham Hotspur manager, but now, to hear tell, the Porto coach is earmarked for even greater things and a far larger salary.

The new Saveclaudio.co.uk website received 3 000 responses in its first week. Chelsea’s immense wealth bemuses the public and the manager is the only person at Stamford Bridge to inspire unstinting affection. Claudio Ranieri is seen as the little guy pitted against a vindictive enemy of limitless power.

The Champions League failure against Porto made it feel as if the lights had been dimmed on Manchester United’s season, yet the result also casts a pall over the past. Once the piercing regret has eased, the disappointment will invigorate arguments over the policies that have been pursued in recent years.

Everything was exactly where the fans wanted it to be in the Stadium of Light last Sunday. Alan Shearer, present as a television summariser, was within easy mocking range and, with the win over Sheffield United, Sunderland were in the FA Cup semifinals.

An investigation is under way into the scandal of the forward who scored a goal. Lomana Lua-Lua’s equaliser for Portsmouth is a cause célèbre because it was struck against Newcastle United, the club who sent him to Fratton Park on loan during the transfer window.

They ought to shift the tactics board from Carrington to the Old Trafford boardroom. The chairperson of Manchester United, Sir Roy Gardner, and the chief executive, David Gill, have to come up with a defensive formation and gauge their scope for counter-attacks.

Nobody spreads panic quite like a man of his word. Louis Saha ensured that he would be departing as soon as he proposed to see out the full term of his agreement with his club. The sale of Saha to Manchester United for an estimated £10-million has now been agreed.