Was the chef a Gunner?

This is surely a stuff for the conspiracy theorists. Did someone knowingly tamper with the food consumed by the Tottenham Hotspur players, causing at least 10 of them to suffer from severe food poisoning? What makes this interesting is the timing of this incident – on a day when Spurs were to play the most important game in their season.

As it happens, a lethargic team performance by the players resulted in a defeat at the hands of West Ham. More disappointing was the fact that the defeat allowed their arch-rivals Arsenal to pip them to the much coveted fourth spot (and the Champions League).

Spurs held on to the spot since December and looked as though they will block their rivals’ path into the European money spinner. Now they are looking at a loss of at least £10 million. Their consolation is a spot at the less attractive Uefa Cup.

Rumour mongerers are already wagging their tongues, saying that the food poisoning incident was no accident.

The police are probing the matter. They are interviewing chefs and waiters at the Marriott Hotel in London's Canary Wharf about their role in food preparation and their club allegiances.

I don’t think there was anything sinister in the matter but if the police do find something interesting, this surely has then taken the inter-club rivalry into another scary level.