As a Corinthian aesthete, I value the game above the prize, beauty above all else. I fear money has devalued this quest. In days of yore, teams would blaze away, attack like Panzers and simply thrill. Spurs of 1961 swashbuckled with Dave Mackay, Cliff Jones, Danny Blanchflower and co. In a nutshell, the players revelled. Now it's "close 'em down", retaliate before they do, win ugly.