Players living in a moral vacuum

TITUS BRAMBLE is just the latest in a long list of high profile players caught up in scandals that have shamed his sport, and whether or not the allegations prove to be true, there can be little doubt that modern footballers are now living in a moral vacuum almost unrecognisable to normal society.

Quite when football shook off the everyday swings and balances that govern the rest of our lives is unclear but certainly the formation of the Premier League and the huge wages that arrived with it played a part.

But there are those who argue it goes much further back, to the days when the excesses of George Best and his champagne lifestyle set the tone for El Beatle wannabes who dreamt as much of celebrity and glamour as of success on the football pitch.