Excuse me a moment while I blow your mind: Italia '90 is now as long ago as England winning the World Cup was back then. To put it another way, 1966 to 1990 = 24 years; 1990 to 2014 = also 24 years. That's despite me remembering Gazza's tears like it happened yesterday, and Geoff Hurst and the Russian linesman and all that having always seemed like ancient history. Anyway, as you've no doubt gathered, this is the Beeb's review of the 1990 World Cup finals, as broadcast around Christmas of that year. Des Lynam presents the highs, lows, and indifferences of a tournament that was far higher in drama than it was in quality football. Without spoiling anything, look out for England, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland all being there and achieving various degrees of success; Cameroon and Roger Milla upsetting the apple cart and making the quarter-finals; the first sendings-off in a World Cup Final that was little short of a disgrace; Pearce and Waddle's penalty heartbreak; Salvatore "Toto" Schillaci stealing the show for the hosts; Rudi Voeller getting sent off apparently for being spat on by Frank Rijkaard; and a washed-up Diego Maradona still being good enough to drag a very poor side all the way to the final, practically single-handedly (no pun intended). If you watched the tournament at the time, I guarantee that this will evoke plenty of memories, including of the no fewer than four countries who qualified yet no longer exist. (Bonus points if you can work them all out before they appear.) So enjoy! I'm afraid there are some issues with the sound for the first five minutes or so, but that soon sorts itself out. (Please remember that this is an off-air VHS recording, so don't go expecting 1080p HD quality. I'm fairly certain that this video isn't commercially available, and I've uploaded it for its historic interest only. That said, if you are a copyright holder and object, please don't hesitate to contact me.)

• published: 11 Jan 2014
• views: 26