England Under-20 coach Les Reed has welcomed FIFA's decision to postpone the World Youth Championships which had been due to be played in the United Arab Emirates from 25 March - 16 April...

World football's Governing Body took the decision having "taken account of its responsibilities towards the players, officials and other parties, as well as towards the media and spectators" and it is a decision that Reed fully understands.

"Common sense has prevailed and the decision has been taken in a measured fashion with no panic," Reed explained to TheFA.com.

"I have been kept up-to-date all the way along and have in turn kept my players, their clubs and their family fully briefed on the situation too.

"I had expected that this might happen and had prepared for it in the sense that I had consciously not named any squad until I knew what was happening.

"The players welfare has always been my priority so, from that point of view, I welcome the decision.

"In terms of how we move forward from here, I would have thought that FIFA have two options.

"The first option would be to host the tournament in another country this summer, which would be good from our perspective because we would have the possibility of taking an extremely strong squad because there would be no league action going on at that time. 

"The second possibility would be that the Championships could still be held in the UAE in the autumn or winter of this year. Clearly by that time the nature of our squad could have changed but you can see how FIFA might be tempted to take that option considering the time, investment and planning that has gone into playing the competition there.

"From an England perspective, I am very much looking forward to meeting up with my players for the match against Switzerland on March 19.

"I'll have a chat with them, tell them what I know and what my plans are, and then we'll concentrate on the football."

The FA's Acting Chief Executive David Davies was also pleased by the decision. 

He told TheFA.com: "This is the right decision by the FIFA Executive Committee, even if the circumstances are regrettable. We have lobbied FIFA consistently in recent weeks and wrote to them only last Monday setting out England's views.

"Now is not the time for such a tournament to take place, but we are sure that another opportunity for our friends in the Asian confederation will present itself."


We will keep you updated on this story.

From Daniel Freedman