Poetic tribute to England clash

Beckham will lead England in the clash

Nigerian-born novelist Ben Okri has written a poem to mark the England World Cup match with his mother country on Wednesday.

Okri, who lives in London, wrote the poem after being asked by the Evening Standard.

Ben Okri won the Booker in 1991

The poem eulogises the team ethic and the endeavours of mastering the beautiful game.

England need only a draw against Nigeria, who are already out of the tournament, to qualify for the second round.

The writer, who won the Booker Prize in 1991 for his novel The Famished Road, has refused to predict a winner of the game.

'Draw'

He told the newspaper: "I'm not taking sides. I'm going to be a Venutian on the day.

"But if I weren't a Venutian I would prefer a draw."

The poem in full:

The game is what it's all about,
Let's give it our best shout.
Everywhere else they're losing the plot,
But the mystery of the game is all we've got.
And so play the game with a happy soul,
Mastering the game is the true goal.
All it takes is the wisdom of one, not eleven,
And we can live as if in heaven.