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Finally, China have made it to the World Cup finals. They can hardly wait and nor can the Korean tourism industry. Zhang Wenya reports

If England fans think “30 years of hurt” was tough, pity their Chinese counterparts. China have been trying simply to qualify for the World Cup finals since 1957. Nearly 50 years of hurt – and considerable heaps of humiliation – have been the fate of fans in the world’s most populous country. Among a people for whom “face” (and not losing it) is of considerable im­portance, the procession of defeats in vital qualifying matches has been soul-destroying.

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Ulf Roosvald spent time with Tord Grip when England's assistant coach first came to London. Here he profiles the man who walks two steps behind Sven

It was the day of calm before the storm. Tord Grip pre­pared himself by renewing his wardrobe. He stepped inside a men’s outfitters in Soho and said a friendly good morning to the shopkeepers – in French to Karim from Algeria, in English to his colleague. Two months in London had been enough to become a reg­ular. When he leaves he is carrying two bags with a new blazer, two pairs of trousers, three ties. “I’m not vain by any means, but I have to look good if I’m going to sit next to Sven­nis. He always wears tailored suits, you know.”

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Wednesday 1 Villa and Newcastle are both through to their respective “finals” in the Intertoto. John Gregory seems underwhelmed by his side’s away goals win over Rennes: “If we’ve got to play in the competition then qualifying for the UEFA Cup is what it’s all about.” Barry Town beat Porto 3-1 in the second leg of their Champions League tie. The Football League deny reports that Celtic and Rangers may be invited into this season’s Worthington Cup, although League chairman Keith Harris hopes to see them included next year: “They would help spice up the competition for our sponsors and improve its appeal to the television audience.” Celtic’s 4-3 win at Old Trafford in Ryan Giggs’s testimonial is enlivened by several near-fights, most featuring David Beckham. Dutch goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar is the subject of the first-ever transfer deal between Fulham and Juventus, moving for £7 million. Portsmouth sign 1998 World Cup star Robert Prosinecki from Dinamo Zagreb.

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Keith Butterick looks at how Deloitte have gradually enhanced their reputation

The Deloitte & Touche Annual Review of Football Finance is celebrating its tenth an­niversary. Things have changed dramatically since Gerry Boon, Oldham Athletic fan and an accountant at Deloitte’s Manchester office, produced the first report. Colleagues, who tolerated his interest in comparing the fin­ances of football clubs like an indulgent father looks at his son’s latest craze, considered him slightly barmy.

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How footballers' biographies are simply a form of propaganda in a feeble attempt to sway public opinion in their favour

We may never know quite why Jaap Stam left Man Utd for Lazio. Some pundits seem to think that the sudden sale of a hitherto key player had nothing do with his published comments. “Rev­enge for a literary atrocity? Forget it,” sug­gested the Independent’s James Lawton, who is inclined to think Stam’s manager had long since lost faith and was simply waiting to line up a replacement before selling him.

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