It rained in Equatorial Guinea this afternoon. And when I say it rained, half the sky dumped its contents on the Bata Stadium in less than half an hour, flooding the pitch, the dressing rooms and the tunnel elading to the pitch.
It has stopped raining now but the match has started, in conditions that are quite simply unplayable. The ball is not moving when kicked, players are sliding all over the place and teams are resorting to trying to keep the ball in the air.
It doesn't matter whether it's Wembley or Bata, the referee has the same responsibilities - players' safety. And Mr Coulibaly of Benin, who appeared at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa as a referee, should have cancelled this match, even though I'm sure he faced intense pressure from African tournament organisers to get the game started. It's the referee's job, and no-one else's, to decide if a pitch is fit to play on.
But when an expensive Europe-based player gets his leg broken on this dangerous pitch, then the noise will really start.
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