Quote of the day

"The worst it got was probably when I reacted to getting a touchline ban by playing the game from outside my room. I hit start, left the room, came in again at half-time, hit start and left again. It was a Champions League tie against Espanyol. We lost 1-0."

Comedian Tony Jameson on the extraordinary lengths to which his obsession with Football Manager has driven him.

We only ever had Championship Manager 95/96, and as a football stats nerd I'm so glad for my sanity's sake that that was the case. Playing one week of the season on even a primitive version like that used to take more than an hour, as I'd obsessively have to check all of the other results in all four English professional divisions and keep tabs on anyone doing well in case they might be potential signings.

It's certainly true that the players whose abilities are overestimated are the most memorable. Swedish defender Teddy Lucic and Croatian attacking midfielder Ivica Mornar were among my two most regular signings, and when their real-life selves washed up in the Premier League it was an eye-opener to see just how mediocre they actually were...

(Thanks to Paul for the link.)