The chestnut's diet has since been changed to a lower-energy feed but Todd is nevertheless

The chestnut's diet has since been changed to a lower-energy feed, but Todd is nevertheless pleased that the horse will not be doing his dressage until tomorrow afternoon. "Bertie has the potential to do much better dressage, but we'll have to see whether he's in the right frame of mind." Bertie Blunt was "a complete lunatic" when competing in a pre-Badminton dressage show last month. A repeat of last year's victory may depend on how the two horses that Todd rides for Bond International feel on the day they do their dressage. "Ace can get a bit tense, but he never does a bad test - it's either average or good," he said of the horse he rides this morning. No Tottenham supporter will be entitled to fix him with a bilious stare.

With persistence and style he has done more than any other individual to counter the befuddling effects of a scandal that brought the threat of relegation before a ball had been kicked.This is the basis of the affection in which Klinsmann is held. Ask what an outstanding footballer looks like and whose name springs to mind?. Mark Todd has two regular partners, Just an Ace and Bertie Blunt, to ride at the Badminton Three-Day Event which begins this morning. This does not necessarily make it easier than last year, when the brilliant New Zealander won the Mitsubishi Trophy on a last-minute ride, Horton Point But it does mean that he starts with shorter odds.

Neither does Klinsmann appear to go along with the view that critics are naturally perverse, and admiration is wrung from them only by the supreme artistry of a particularly great performance. He has the reputation of being polite and co-operative.If Klinsmann decides to take up with Bayern Munich, nobody will be able to suggest that he has been influenced by a cold principle. It is one of the reasons why he has grown used to long, loud and practically continuous applause. It was during the 1990 World Cup finals when Beckenbauer managed West Germany and after Klinsmann had played heroically against the Netherlands, taking on their defence single-handed following Rudi Vller's dismissal.One advantage Klinsmann possesses over a majority of contemporary attackers is the timing that enables him to exploit exceptional headwork. "With Jrgen in our team, no cause is ever lost," Franz Beckenbauer once said of him. In the frenetic context of English football Klinsmann is refreshingly intelligent and original but has shown himself to be more skilful than was imagined.In all sorts of conspicuous ways Klinsmann makes things happen. However, I must admit to being surprised by the German technically.

Understandably, coaches point him out to aspirants as an example.You may be aware that the football writers of England have chosen Klinsmann as their Footballer of the Year To my mind there was no more obvious candidate. Footballers, in the main, are inherently sceptical and suspicious Reputations are devoutly ignored. What a new player has achieved matters less than his attitude. In that respect Klinsmann has proved to be a pearl of consistent effort. Far from resting on great personal success, he works for goals with more determination than any of the others, and there is something in the forthright earnestness of his play which is in itself pleasing. The fashion raised concern in some quarters but, pragmatically, the important thing was that Klinsmann performed with considerable skill and enthusiasm.The latter quality will have been equally important in Tottenham's dressing- room. Soon, fans were going around in the national shirt of Germany.

Gets away with murder," opponents grumbled.This and the fact that Tottenham Hotspur draw traditionally a great deal of support from the Jewish communities in North London helps to make Klinsmann's success in their colours all the more remarkable.Apart from the great Dave Mackay, no player in Tottenham's history was seen to be more immediately heroic. Taking more tumbles than a novice skater, Klinsmann had acquired a vexatious reputation for persuading gullible referees that quite legitimate tackles were assaults upon the person "Touch him and over he goes. "No doubt about it," he said, "the man is an out and out cheat." A widespread view of Klinsmann, especially in this country, was approximate to that of the footballer who put forward a contemporary in the game when called upon to nominate his favourite actor. While bearing no grudge against the reigning champions generally, he could not stomach the thought of Jrgen Klinsmann's continuing prosperity. We shall be competitive, play attacking cricket and take it from there.".