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Bog Standard

Toilet humor has always been the safe haven of your Daily, and publications remain attentive to significant toilet tales and milestones, especially in relation to football. What a delight it was to find out that an online journalist Adrian Chiles has a West Brom-themed urinal at his home. Spare a thought about the Tykes follower who understood the bathroom a little too literally, and was rescued from the vacant Barnsley ground after falling asleep on the loo at half-time during a 2015 defeat against Fleetwood Town. “He had no shoes on and couldn't find his phone and his cap,” stated a representative from Barnsley fire services. And who can forget during his peak popularity at Manchester City, the controversial forward popped into a local college to use the facilities back in 2012. “Balotelli parked his Bentley outside, then came in and was asking where the toilets were, subsequently he entered the faculty room,” an undergraduate shared with the Manchester Evening News. “Subsequently he wandered round the campus acting like the owner.”

The Restroom Quitting

Tuesday represents 25 years to the day that Kevin Keegan resigned as England manager after a brief chat inside a lavatory booth together with Football Association official David Davies in the bowels of Wembley, following that infamous 1-0 defeat versus Germany during 2000 – England’s final match at the famous old stadium. As Davies recalls in his journal, his private Football Association notes, he had entered the sodden troubled England locker room directly following the fixture, only to find David Beckham in tears and Tony Adams “fired up”, the two stars urging for the official to reason with Keegan. Subsequent to Hamann's direct free-kick, Keegan moved wearily along the passageway with a blank expression, and Davies found him slumped – similar to his Anfield posture in 1996 – in the dressing room corner, muttering: “I'm leaving. This isn't for me.” Grabbing Keegan, Davies worked frantically to save the circumstance.

“What place could we identify for confidential discussion?” remembered Davies. “The passageway? Swarming with media. The changing area? Crowded with emotional footballers. The bathing section? I couldn't conduct an important discussion with the national coach while athletes jumped in the pool. Only one option presented itself. The restroom stalls. A crucial incident in the Three Lions' storied past happened in the old toilets of a stadium facing demolition. The coming demolition was almost tangible. Leading Kevin into a compartment, I secured the door behind us. We remained standing, looking at each other. ‘My decision is final,’ Kevin declared. ‘I'm leaving. I'm not capable. I'll announce to journalists that I'm not competent. I cannot inspire the squad. I can't extract the additional effort from these athletes that's required.’”

The Consequences

And so, Keegan resigned, later admitting that he had found his period as Three Lions boss “without spirit”. The two-time European Footballer of the Year stated: “I found it hard to fill in the time. I began working with the visually impaired team, the hearing-impaired team, supporting the female team. It's an extremely challenging position.” The English game has progressed significantly in the quarter of a century since. For better or worse, those Wembley restrooms and those twin towers have long disappeared, although a German now works in the dugout where Keegan once perched. Thomas Tuchel’s side are among the favourites for the upcoming Geopolitics World Cup: England fans, don’t take this era for granted. This specific commemoration from one of England's worst moments serves as a recall that situations weren't always this good.

Real-Time Coverage

Follow Luke McLaughlin at 8pm UK time for Women’s Bigger Cup updates regarding Arsenal versus Lyon.

Quote of the Day

“We stood there in a lengthy line, clad merely in our briefs. We represented Europe's top officials, elite athletes, role models, grown-ups, parents, determined individuals with strong principles … however all remained silent. We hardly glanced at one another, our gazes flickered a bit nervously while we were called forward two by two. There Collina observed us from top to bottom with a chilly look. Quiet and watchful” – ex-international official Jonas Eriksson reveals the humiliating procedures officials were once put through by former Uefa head of referees Pierluigi Collina.

Football Daily Letters

“How important is a name? There’s a poem by Dr Seuss called ‘Too Many Daves’. Have Blackpool suffered from Too Many Steves? Steve Bruce, along with aides Steve Agnew and Steve Clemence have been dismissed through the exit. Is this the termination of the Steve fascination? Not quite! Steve Banks and Steve Dobbie remain to take care of the first team. Complete Steve forward!” – John Myles

“Now that you've relaxed spending restrictions and distributed some merchandise, I've chosen to type and make a pithy comment. Ange Postecoglou states that he picked fights in the schoolyard with youngsters he knew would beat him up. This self-punishing inclination must explain his decision to join Nottingham Forest. As an enduring Tottenham follower I'll remain thankful for the second-year silverware yet the only follow-up season honor I predict him achieving near the Trent River, if he remains that duration, is the Championship and that would be some struggle {under the present owner” – Stewart McGuinness.|