Didn't he used to be rubbish? Stephen Appiah of Ghana

Regarded as a veteran and father figure of the Ghana team despite being only 29, the former Juventus midfield juggernaut spent a month on trial at White Hart Lane in January 2009 and was believed to be part of a trio of transfer wheeler-deals Harry Redknapp was planning that also included tabling a bid for England's positionally dysfunctional centre-back Matthew "Cock" Upson. • Follow the Guardian's World Cup team on Twitter • Sign up to play our daily Fantasy Football game • Stats centre: Get the lowdown on every player • The latest team-by-team news, features and more With Our 'Arry apparently fretting over his fitness, the "Tornado's" final trial match was for Spurs reserves at Reading. The Ghana radio station My Joy FM afterwards claimed the Black Stars captain "athletically marshalled the Spurs midfield" in the 4-4 draw, while a Spurs fan, Simon Fletcher, who watched the match apparently told the Ghanaian media: "I am surprised that Harry has not given Appiah the damn contract. He is miles above the midfielders we have in our team. All the talk about fitness is rubbish." Sadly Mr Fletcher was not the one calling the shots. Everybody's favourite Cockney geezer decided Appiah's dodgy knee wasn't worth the risk. Strangely, Appiah has managed more minutes on the pitch at this World Cup than Ledley King did, proving that the Spurs boss has just what it takes to succeed Fabio Capello.