Savage was involved in a serious car crash at the age of 19, as he contemplated telling his parents about his release from Manchester United, leaving him without any feeling in his left arm for several days.

BBC: Robbie Savage 'wants to be the next Gary Lineker'

Moreover, the cuts in spending and increases in taxes and the retirement age that some ex-communist countries have imposed over the past year were much more savage than anything that Greece or Spain have so far contemplated.

ECONOMIST: Eastern Europe's economies