THE fall-out following Adam Crozier's departure from the Football Association leaves a very sour taste.

Only last week, this column had a pop at Crozier for not wanting to get his hands dirty on a number of 'real' footballing issues.

His much-lauded modernisation of the FA was long overdue and no-one can argue he hasn't helped turn it into a money-making machine - £120million turnover at the last count.

But apart from appointing England's first overseas coach and moving the governing body's HQ to a swanky Soho complex, just what did Crozier achieve that has had any real effect on the average fan?

More style than substance, his failure to even reply to York City fans' pleas for help when the club's future hung in the balance was an appalling snub from the game's most prominent figure. The predicament facing the Minstermen has far reaching implications for the whole of football.

But the sorry tale of his departure from the FA has all the hallmarks of a boardroom power-struggle, where money and bruised egos replaced common-sense and the wider interests of the game, or even worse a childish playground spat.

Although not sorry to see Crozier go, the manner in which he has been forced out was all too predictable.

Few people like change, no matter how necessary. And when you're dealing with Premiership chairmen with over-inflated ideas of self-worth then Crozier's departure was perhaps inevitable.

In a nutshell, the Premier League wants a greater say in the FA's decision-making, particularly commercially, or when those decisions concern players from their clubs playing for England or in the FA Cup.

Crozier felt this was too much influence for the FA to concede, giving the Premier League's vested interests too much sway.

With the Scotsman gone, the chairmen will probably be feeling very smug this week - his departure suggests it is they not the FA who are calling the shots.

What a horrible thought.

Behaving like nave teenagers armed with a credit card they can ill afford, the likes of Leeds and Chelsea supremos Peter Ridsdale and Ken Bates have racked up millions' worth of debt that have left their clubs teetering on the precipice.

David Richards, bizarrely, remains the Premier League chairman while his cash-strapped Sheffield Wednesday mooch around the lower reaches of Division One.

What gives these men the right to think they know what's best for the game is anybody's guess but one thing is certain; if they were their clubs' managers they would have sacked themselves by now.

In many ways, Crozier, accused by his critics of exceeding his authority, has been the victim of his own success. The money-led chairmen have seen the cash streaming into the FA - money that was targeted for the game's grass-roots - and like spoilt kids have decided they want a slice.

They trot out the argument that they pay players' wages and therefore should be recompensed when away on international duty. But maybe the FA should demand a payment from clubs for making a player an international star.

Rio Ferdinand was a £20million player at the end of last season. After playing for England in the World Cup his value rose a further £10million. I doubt Ridsdale sent the FA a thank-you card.

Amid such self-interest and greed, you have to fear for Crozier's successor and the game in general. The job description should demand 'eyes in the back of the head'.

The fact remains, for the good of the game the FA should be no-one's doormat. Not least to men who have blood on their hands, dirt on their shoes and smell of foul play lingering around them.

Pitch effect?

CROZIER'S ousting could be felt on the pitch should Sven-Goran Eriksson decide to follow his biggest ally out of the FA.

It's hardly been the best of times for the Swede. Lambasted after England's World Cup exodus, Eriksson has endured revelations over his private life, overseen the dour draw with Macedonia and then the loss of Crozier and his assistant Steve McClaren.

In the face of speculation linking him with the Italian job, Eriksson has confirmed his commitment to the England cause.

For that we should be grateful, if for no reason other than there's no obvious candidate to replace him. What a sad indictment of English football.

Updated: 12:37 Tuesday, November 05, 2002